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Proceedings  of  the 

Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh 


Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh 


/^t,i 


T    ^  •  > 


HARVARD    UNIVERSITY. 


LIBRARY 

OF  THE 

MUSEUM  OP  COMPARATIVE  ZOOLOGY. 


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>' 


PROCEEDINGS 


OP  THB 


ROYAL  SOCIETY  OF  EDINBURGH. 


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PROCEEDINGS 


THE  ROYAL  SOCIETY 


EDINBURGH. 


VOL.  XXV. 

(IN  TWO  PARTS.) 

PART  I. 

(Coiitaiuing  pages  1-592.) 

NOVEMBER  1903  to  MARCH  1905. 


""EDINBURGH; 


PBINTED  BY  NEILL  AND  COMPANY,   LIMITED. 

HDCOCOVI. 


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CONTENTS. 


PA6B 

Election  of  Office-Bearers,  Session  1903-4,  ....  1 

The  People  of  the  Faroes.  By  Nelson  Annandale,  B.A.  (Oxon.). 
Communicated  by  Professor  D.  J.  Cunningham,  F.R.S.  Issued 
separately  November  30,  1903,    .....  2 

Seiches  observed  in  Loch  Ness.  By  R  Maclagan-Wedderburn. 
C<mimunicated  by  Professor  Chrystal.  Issued  separately  Janu- 
ary 15, 1904,  .  .  .  .26 

The  Bull  Trout  of  the  Tav  and  of  Tweed.  By  W.  L.  Calderwood. 
(With  a  Plate.)    Issued  separately  January  30, 1904,    .  .        27 

The  Relative  Efficiency  of  certain  Methods  of  performing 
Artificial  Respiration  in  Man.  By  E.  A.  Schater,  F.R.S. 
(With  a  Plate.)    Issued  separately  January  29, 1904,     .  .        39 

Physico-Chemical  Investigations  in  the  Amide  Group.  By 
Charles  E.  Fawsitt,  Ph.D.,  B.Sc.  (Edin.  and  Lond.).  (7am- 
municated  by  Professor  Crum  Brown.  Issued  separately  Feb- 
ruary 6, 1904,       .......        51 

The  Theory  of  Cfeneral  Determinants  in  the  Historical  Order  of 
Development  up  to  1846.  By  Thomas  Muir,  LL.D.  Issued 
separately  February  12,  1904,      .....        61 

Man  as  Artist  and  Sportsman  in  the  Pakeolithic  Period.  By 
Robert  Munro,  M.A.,  M.D.,  LL.D.  (With  Eleven  Plates.) 
Issued  separately  February  13,  1904,  .  .92 

The  Theory  of  Continuants  in  the  Historical  Order  of  its  Develop- 
ment up  to  1870.  By  Thomas  Muir,  LL.D.  Issued  separately 
February  26, 1904,  ......      129 

On  the  Origin  of  the  Epiphysis  Cerebri  as  a  Bilateral  Structure 
in  the  Chick.  By  John  Cameron,  M.B.  (Edin.X  M.R.C.S. 
^Eng.),  Carnegie  Fellow,  Demonstrator  of  Anatomy,  United 
Collie,  University  of  St  Andrews.  Communicated  by  Dr 
W.  G.  Aitchison  Robertson.     Issued  separately  March  17, 1904,      160 

Theorem  regarding  the  Orthogonal  Transformation  of  a  Quadric. 
By  Thomas  Muir,  LL.D.    Issued  separately  March  17,  1904,      .       168 

Ocean  Teniperatures  and  Solar  Radiation.  By  Professor  C.  G. 
Knott    Issued  separately  April  4,  1904,  .  .173 

On  Deep-water  Two-dimensional  Waves  produced  by  any  given 
TTiitiAting  Disturbance.  By  Lord  Kelvin.  Issued  separately 
April  4, 1904, ^186 


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vi  Contents. 

PAGE 

Some  Field  Evidence  relating  to  the  Modes  of  Occurrence  of 
Intrusive  Rocks,  with  some  Remarks  upon  the  Origin  of 
Eruptive  Rocks  in  general.  By  J.  Q.  Goodchild,  of  the 
Geological  Survey,  F.G.S.,  F.Z.S.,  Curator  of  the  Collection 
of  Scottish  Mineralogy  in  the  Edinburgh  Museum  of  Science 
and  Art.  Communicated  by  R.  H.  Traquair,  LL.D.,  M.D., 
F.R.S.     leeued  separately  May  20,  1904,  .  .197 

Note  on  the  Standard  of  Relative  Viscosity,  and  on  "  Negative 
Viscosity."     By  W.  W.  Taylor,  M.A.,  D.Sc.     Communicated  by  ; 

Professor  Crum  Brown.    Issued  separately  June  16, 1904,  227 

The  Viscosity  of  Aqueous  Solutions  of  Chlorides,  Bromides,  and 
Iodides.  By  W.  W.  Taylor,  M.A.,  D.Sc,  and  Clerk  Ranken, 
B.Sc.  Communicaitd  by  Professor  Crum  Brown.  Issued 
separately  June  16,  1904,  .....      231  j 

On  the  Date  of  the  Upheaval  which  caused  the  25-feet  Raised  j 

Beaches  in  Central  Scotland.     By  Robert  Munro,  M.A.,  M.D., 
LL.D.     Issued  separately  June  18,  1904,  ...       242 

The  Complete  Solution   of    the  Differential  Equation  of  Jin]. 
By  the  Rev.   F.   H.  Jackson,  H.M.S.  "Irresistible."      Com- 
municated by  Dr  Wm.  Peddie.     Issued  separately  August  16,  ; 
1904, 273 

A  Differentiating  Machine.  By  J.  Erskine  Murray,  D.Sc. 
Issued  separately  August  15,  1904,  ....      277 

On  the    Thermal    Expansion    of    Dilute    Solutions  of    certain  | 

Hydroxides.    By  George  A.  Carse,  M.A.,  B.Sc.     Communicated  | 

by  Professor  MacGregor.     Issued  separately  August  16,  1904,    .      281 

Effect  of  Transverse  Magnetization  on  the  Resistance  of  Nickel  at 
High  Temperatures.  By  Professor  C.  G.  Knott.  Issued 
separately  July  30,  1904,  .....      292 

Observations  on  some  A^ed  Specimens  of  Sagartia  trt^lodytes,  and 
on  the  Duration  of  Life  in  Ccelenteratea  By  J.  H.  Ashworth, 
D.Sc,  Lecturer  in  Invertebrate  Zoology  in  the  University  of 
Edinburgh,  and  Nelson  Annandale,  B.A.,  Deputy-Super- 
intendent of  the  Indian  Museum,  Calcutta.  Communicatea  by 
Professor  J.  C.  Ewart,  M.D.,  F.R.S.  Issued  separately  July  21, 
1904, 296 

Note  on  the  Molecular  Condition  of  Nickel  (and  Iron)  de- 
magnetised by  decreasing  Reversals.  By  .fames  Russell. 
Issued  separately  August  22,  1904,  ....      309 

On  the  Front  and  Rear  of  a  Free  Procession  of  Waves  in  Deep 
Water.  (Cmtinued  from  Proc  R.S.E.,  Feb.  1st,  1904.)  By 
Lord  Kelvin.     Issued  separately  August  22,  1904,  .  .311 

Some  Results  in  the  Mathematical  Theory  of  Seiches.  By  Pro- 
fessor Chrystal.     Issued  separately  October  6,  1904,  .      328 

A  New  Form  of  Spectrophotometer.  By  J.  R.  Milne,  B.Sc, 
Carnegie  Scholar  in  Natuial  Philosophy,  Edinburgh  University.  i 

Issued  separately  November  5,  1904,       ....      338 

A  New  Form  of  Juxtapositor  to  bring  into  Accurate  Contact 
the  Edges  of  the  two  Beams  of  Light  used  in  Spectro- 
nhotometrv,  with  an  aj)t)lication  to  Polarimetry.  By  J.  R. 
Milne,  B.oc.,  Carnegie  Scholar  in  Natural  Philosophy.  Issued 
separately  January  17,  1905,  .....      365 


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Contents.  vii 

PAGE 

The  Three-line  Detenninants  of  a  Six-by-Three  Array.  By 
Thomas  Muir,  LL.D.     Issued  separately  January  20,  1905,       .      364 

The  Sum  of  the  Signed  Primary  Minors  of  a  Determinant.  By 
Thomas  Muir,  LL.D.    Issued  separately  January  20,  1905,       .      372 

Ciystallographical   Notes.      By  Hugh   Marshall,   D.Sc,  F.R.S. 

Issued  separately  February  1,  1905,         .  .  .  .383 

The  Effect  of  Simultaneous  Removal  of  Thymus  and  Spleen  in 
young  Quinea-pigs.  By  D.  Noel  Pal  on  and  Alexander  Goodall. 
(From  the  Laboratory  of  the  Royal  College  of  PhysidanSy  Edin- 
burgh,)   Issued  separately  February  1,  1905,      .  .  .      389 

Networks  of  the  Plane  in  Absolute  Geometry.  By  Dimcan  M. 
Y.  Sommerville,  M.A.,  B.Sc.,  University  of  St  Andrews. 
(Abstract,)  Communicated  by  Professor  P.  R.  Scott  Lang. 
Issued  separately  February  1, 1905,         .  .  .392 

A  Specimen  of  the  Salmon  in  transition  from  the  Smolt  to  the 
Grilse  Stage.  By  W.  L.  Calderwood.  (With  Two  Plates.) 
Issued  separately  February  1,  1905,         ....      396 

A  Comparative  Study  of  the  Lakes  of  Scotland  and  Denmark. 
By  Dr  C.  Wesenberg-Lund,  of  the  Danish  Fresh- water  Biol(^cal 
Station,  Frederikwal,  near  K.  Lyngby,  Denmark.  Vom- 
municated  by  Sir  John  Murray,  K.CTB.,  F.K.S.  (From  tJie 
Danish  Fresh-water  Biological  Laboratory,  Frederiksdal,)  (With 
Two  Plates.)    Issued  separately  March  3, 1905, .  .401 

Variations  in  the  Crystallisation  of  Potassium  Hydrogen  Succinate 
due  to  the  presence  of  other  metallic  compounds  in  the  Solution. 
(Preliminary  Notice.)  By  Alexander  T.  Cameron,  M.A. 
Communicated  by  Dr  Hugh  Marshall,  F.R.S.  Issued  separately 
February  4, 1905,  ......      449 

A  Laboratory  Apparatus  for  Measuring  the  Lateral  Strains  in 
Tension  and  (Jompression  Members,  with  some  Applications 
to  the  Measurement  of  the  Elastic  Constants  of  Metals.  By 
R  G.  Coker,  M.A.  (Cantab.),  D.Sc  (Edin.),  F.R.S.E..  Professor 
of  Mechanical  Engineering  and  Applied  Mathematics,  City  and 
Guilds  Technical  CoUege,  Finsbury,  London.  (With  a  Plate.) 
Issued  separately  March  3, 1905,  .  .452 

On  Astronomical  Seeing.  By  Dr  J.  Halm,  Lecturer  in  Astronomy 
in  the  University  of  Edinburgh.  Issued  separately  March  3, 
1906, 458 

On  the  Graptolite-bearing  Rocks  of  the  South  Orkneys.  By 
J.  H.  Harvey  Pirie,  B.Sc,  M.B.,  Ch.B.  Communicated  6y 
Dr  Home,  F.R.S.  With  a  Note  by  Dr  Peach  on  Specimens 
from  the  South  Orkneys.     Issued  separately  March  30,  1905,    .      463 

A  Possible  Explanation  of  the  Formation  of  the  Moon.  By 
George  Romanes,  C.E.     Issued  separately  March  30, 1906,       \      471 

On  Pennella:  a  Crustacean  parasitic  on  the  Finner  Whale 
(Bakenopiera  musculus).  (Abstract.)  By  Sir  William  Turner, 
K.C.B.,LL.D.    Issued  separately  March  30,  1906,  .      480 

The  Diameters  of  Twisted  Threads,  with  an  Account  of  the 
History  of  the  Mathematical  Setting  of  Cloths.  By  Thomas 
Oliver,  B.Sc  (Lond.  &  Edin,).  Communicated  by  Dr  C.  G. 
Knott     Issued  separately  April  8,  1906,  .481 


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viii  Contents. 

PAGE 

A  Study  of  Three  Vegetarian  Diets.  By  D.  Noel  Paton  and 
J.  C.  Dunlop.  {From  the  Research  Laboratory  of  the  Royal 
College  of  Physicians^  Edinburgh.)  Issued  separately  April  8, 
1905,         ........       498 

Continuants  whose  Main  Diagonal  is  Univarial.  By  Thomas  Muir, 
LL.D.     Issued  separately  April  8,  1905,  .  .  .      507 

On  Professor  Seeliger's  Theory  of  Temporary  Stars.  By  J.  Halm, 
Ph.D.,  Lecturer  on  Astronomy  in  the  University  of  Edinburgh, 
and  Assistant  Astronomer  at  the  Royal  Observatory.  Issuea 
separately  April  15,  1905,  .....       613 

Some  Suggestions  on  the  Nebular  Hypothesis.     By  J.  Halm, 

Ph.D.     Issued  separately  April  15,  1905,  .  .  .      663 

Deep  Water  Ship- Waves.  {Continued  from  Proc.  R  S.E.,  June 
20th,  1904.)  fey  Lord  Kelvin.  Issued  separately  April  18, 
1905, 662 

On  Two  Liquid  States  of  Sulphur  Sa  and  S^  and  their  Transition 
Point.  By  Alexander  Smith.  {Abstract.)  Issued  separately 
April  18,  1905,     .......       588 

The  Nature  of  Amorphous  Sulphur,  and  Contributions  to  the 
Study  of  the  Influence  of  Foreign  Bodies  on  the  Phenomena 
of  Supercooling  observed  when  Melted  Sulphur  is  suddenly 
Chilled.  By  Alexander  Smith.  {Abstract.)  Issued  separately 
April  18,  1905,     .  .  .  .  .  .690 


For  Index  to  Part  I.  see  end  of  Part  II. 


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PROCEEDINGS 


OP  THE 


ROYAL  SOCIETY  OF  EDINBURGH. 

SESSION  1903-4. 


No.  I.]  VOL.  XXV.  [Pp.i-ia8. 


CONTENTS. 

PAOS 

The  People  of  the  Faroes.  By  Nblson  Annandalb,  B.A. 
(Oxoil).  Communicated  by  Professor  D.  J.  Cunning- 
ham, F.R.S.,   ......  2 

{Issued  separately  November  80,  1903.) 

Seiches  obeerved  in  Loch  Ness.    By  E.  Maclagan-Wedder- 

BURN.     Communicated  by  Professor  Chrystal,  25 

{Issued  separately  January  15,  1904.) 

The  Bull  Trout  of  the  Tay  and  of  Tweed.     By  W.  L. 

Calderwood.     (With  a  Plate),  .  .27 

(IssiLed  separately  January  30,  1904.) 

The  Relative  EflSciency  of  certain  Methods  of  performing 
Artificial  Respiration  in  Man.  By  E.  A.  Schafur, 
F.R.S.     (With  a  Plate),  ....         59 

{Issued  separately  January  29,  1904.) 

[Continued  on  page  iv  of  Cover, 


^EDINBURGH: 
PuBUSHXD  BY  ROBERT  GRANT  &  SON,  107  Pbinces  Street,  and 
WILLIAMS  k  NORGATE,  14  Henrietta  Street,  Covent  Garden,  London. 


Price  Seven  Shillings. 


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fiEGULATIONS  REGARDING  THE  PUBLICATION  OF 
PAPERS  IN  THE  PROCEEDINGS  AND  TRANS- 
ACTIONS OF  THE  SOCIETY. 

Thb  Council  beg  to  direct  the  attention  of  authors  of  communications  to 
the  Society  to  the  following  Regulations,  which  have  been  drawn  up  in 
order  to  accelerate  the  publication  of  the  Proceedings  and  Transactions, 
and  to  utilise  as  widely  and  as  fairly  as  possible  the  funds  which  the 
Society  devotes  to  the  publication  of  Scientific  and  Literary  Researches. 

1.  Manuscript  of  Papebs. — ^As  soon  as  any  paper  has  been  passed 
for  publication,  either  in  its  original  or  in  any  altered  form,  and  has  been 
made  ready  for  publication  by  the  author,  it  is  sent  to  the  printer, 
whether  it  has  been  read  or  not. 

The  *  copy '  should  be  written  on  large  sheets  of  paper,  on  one  side 
only,  and  the  pages  should  be  clearly  numbered.  The  MS.  must  be 
easily  legible,  preferably  typewritten,  and  must  be  absolutely  in  its  final 
form  for  printing ;  so  that  corrections  in  proof  shall  be  as  few  as  possible, 
and  shall  not  cause  overrunning  in  the  lines  or  pages  of  the  proof.  All 
tables  of  contents,  references  to  plates  or  illustrations  in  the  text,  etc., 
must  be  in  their  proper  places,  with  the  page  numbers  left  blank ;  and 
spaces  must  be  indicated  for  the  insertion  of  illustrations  that  are  to 
appear  in  the  text. 

2.  Illustrations. — All  illustrations  must  be  drawn  in  a  form  im- 
mediately suitable  for  reproduction;  and  such  illustrations  as  can  be 
reproduced  by  photographic  processes  should,  so  far  as  possible,  be 
preferred.  Drawings  to  be  reproduced  as  line  blocks  should  be  made 
with  Indian  ink  (deadened  with  yellow  if  of  bluish  tone),  preferably  on 
fine  white  bristol  board,  free  from  folds  or  creases ;  smooth,  clean  lines 
or  sharp  dots,  but  no  washes  or  colours  should  be  used.  If  the  drawings 
are  done  on  a  large  scale,  to  be  afterwards  reduced  by  photography,  any 
lettering  or  other  legend  must  be  on  a  corresponding  scale. 

If  an  author  finds  it  inconvenient  to  furnish  such  drawings,  the  Society 
will  have  the  figures  re-drawn  at  his  expense ;  but  this  will  cause  delay. 

When  the  illustrations  are  to  form  plates,  a  scheme  for  the  arrange- 
ment of  the  figures  (in  quarto  plates  for  the  Transactions,  in  octavo  for 
the  Proceedings)  must  be  given,  and  numbering  and  lettering  indicated. 

3.  Peoops. — In  general,  a  first  proof  and  a  revise  of  each  paper  will 
be  sent  to  the  author,  whose  address  should  be  indicated  on  the  MS. 
If  further  proofs  are  required,  owing  to  corrections  or  alterations  for 
which  the  printer  is  not  responsible,  the  expense  of  such  proofs  and 
corrections  will  be  charged  against  the  author. 

All  proofs  must,  if  possible,  be  returned  within  one  week,  addressed  to 
The  Secretary,  RoycU  Society,  Mound,  Edinburgh,  and  not  to  the  printer, 

{Continued  on  page  iii  ofCov^r, 


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^R    U 


33 


PROCEEDINGS 

OF  THE 

HOYAL   SOCIETY   OF   EDINBURGH. 

VOL.  XXV.  1903-4. 

Thb  1218T  Session. 
GENERAL  STATUTORY  MEETING. 
Monday,  26th  October  1903. 
The  following  Council  were  elected : — 

President. 
The  Right  Hon.  Lord  KELVIN,  G.C.V.O.,  F.R.S. 

Fice-  Presidents, 
The  Rev.  Professor  Duns,  D.D. 
Prof.  James  Geikie,  LL.D.,  F.R.S. 
The  Hod.  Lord  M*Laren,  LL.D. 
TheRey.  Professor  Flint,  D.D. 

General  Secretary^Frofeaaor  George  Chrystal,  LL.D. 


Robert  Munro,  M.A.,  M.D.,  LL.D. 
Sir  John  Murray,  K.C.B.,  LL.D., 
•F.R.S. 


Secretaries  to  Ordinary  Meetings, 

Professor  Crum  Brown,  F.R.S. 

Ramsay  H.  Traquair,  M.D.,  LL.D.,  F.R.S. 

Treasttrer—TniLiF  R  D.  Maolaoan,  F.F.A. 

Curator  of  LUnrary  and  Museum — Alexander  Hugh  an,  M.A., 
LL.D.,  F.RS. 

Ordinary  Members  of  Council, 


R.  Tbaill  Omond,  Esq. 
DrGso.  A.  Gibson,  F.R.C.P.E. 
Sir  Abthur  Mitchell,  K.C.B. 
Professor  J.  G.  MacGbegor,  LL.D., 

F.RS. 
John  Horne,  LL.D.,  F.RS. 
C.  G.  Knott,  D.Sc. 
Abthub    T.     Mastsrman,     M.A., 

D.So. 


Professor  Ralph  Stockman,  M.D., 

F.RCP.E. 
Professor    James    Walksb,    D.Sc., 

Ph.D.,  F.RS. 
Professor    Andrew     Gray,     MA., 

LL.D.,  F.RS. 
Robert  Kid8Ton,-F.R.S.,  F.Q.S. 
Professor  D.  J.  Cunningham,  M.D. 

LL.D.,  F.RS. 


PBGC.  ROY.  SOC.  EDIN. — VOL.  XXV. 


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Proceeditigs  of  Boyal  Society  of  Edinburgh.         [suss. 


The  People  of  the  Faroes.     By  Nelson  Annandale,  B.A. 
^Oxon.).     Communicated  by  Professor  D.  J.  Cunningham,  F.RS. 

(MS.  received  Oct.  7,  1908.     Eead  Nov.  2,  1908.) 
Part  I. — Anthropometbical. 

The  physical  anthropology  of  the  Faroes  has  recently  been 
described  in  a  very  elaborate  manner,  as  far  as  the  island  of 
Suderoe  is  concerned,  by  Dr  F.  J0rgensen  (1),  who  was  resident 
there  as  a  medical  man  for  some  years.  While  pointing  out,  how- 
ever, that  the  people  of  Suderoe  differ  considerably  from  those  of  the 
*  northern  islands,'  he  only  gives  a  comparatively  small  series  of 
data  regarding  the  latter,  nor  does  he  state  to  which  of  the  northern 
islands  the  men  he  examined  belonged,  or  even  whether  they 
came  from  one  island  or  from  several.  Apart  from  Suderoe,  there 
are  sixteen  inhabited  islands  (fig.  1)  in  the  group,  and  between  some 
of  them  very  little  communication  exists  even  at  the  present  day. 
In  historical  accoimts  of  the  Faroes  the  six  following  islands  are 
usually  called  the  *  northern  isles,* — viz.,  Kalsoe,  Kunoe,  Boroe, 
Wideroe,  Fugloe,  and  Svinoe, — but  I  take  it  that  Dr  J0rgensen 
would  include  at  least  Osteroe,  Stromoe,  and  Waagoe  also.  His 
elaborate,  laborious,  and  presumably  accurate  tables  serve  so 
well  to  point  the  moral  that  until  a  uniform  method,  a  imiform 
standard,  and  a  uniform  set  of  anthropometrical  instruments  are 
adopted  by  anthropometrists  of  all  nationalities  fiiicd  work  in  this 
branch  of  science  will  be  impossible,  that  I  have  thought  it  well 
to  put  on  record  a  small  series  of  measurements  taken  by  myself 
in  the  Faroes  recently,  and  at  the  same  time  to  point  out  wherein 
some  of  the  data  pretty  generally  adopted  fail  in  accuracy,  differing 
with  the  observer  as  well  as  the  observed. 

My  measurements  were  taken  in  Thorshavn,  the  chief  town  in 
the  islands,  in  August  1903,  upon  twenty  adult  males.  The  only 
value  that  can  be  claimed  for  so  small  a  series  is  that  it  was 
obtained  at  a  definite  period  and  within  a  very  limited  area,  for 
the  men  examined  were  all  resident  in  the  town.  The  length  and 
breadth  of  the  head,  the  length  and  breadth  of  the  nose,  the 


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1903-4.]    Mr  N.  Annandale  on  the  People  of  the  Faroes,  3 


Wtf«CMAf^CC>.     Wx 


THE    FAROES 


^     I     *     I      t     A 


,    THe    MONK 


Fig.  1. 


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4  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  EdirOmrgK      .    [bbs*. 

length  of  the  face,  the  bizygomatic  and  bigonial  breadths,  were 
taken  with  callipers  of  a  simple  type,  while  the  height  of  the  head, 
the  auriculo-nasal  and  the  auriculo-alveolar  lengths  were  taken 
by  means  of  Professor  D.  J.  Cunningham's  craniometer ;  all  these 
measurements,  therefore,  were  obtained  directly,  not  by  projec- 
tions or  estimations.  The  statures  given  can  only  be  approximate, 
as  all  my  subjects  were  measured  with  shoes  or  boots  on  their  feet, 
and  I  was  obliged  to  extract  a  varying  number  of  millimetres  in 
accordance  with  the  kind  of  footgear  worn. 

The  individuals  measured  are  too  few  to  make  a  rigid  mathe* 
matical  examination  of  the  data  regarding  them  legitimate,  and 
they  can  give  at  best  but  an  approximation  to  the  race  characters 
of  the  people  of  Thorshavn.  With  so  small  a  series  perhaps  the 
rough  and  ready  method  of  examination  by  the  aid  of  means 
and  extremes  is  the  best,  as  having  the  least  appearance  of 
finality. 

The  length  of  the  head,  as  may  be  seen  by  the  table,  varies  in 
the  twenty  adult  men  from  176  to  157  millimetres,  while  the 
mean  of  the  series  is  166,  only  '5  less  than  the  mean  of  the  two 
extremes.  Though  the  extremes  in  the  breadth  of  the  head  are 
less  divergent  from  one  another  than  those  of  the  length,  their 
mean  is  more  divergent  from  that  of  the  series,  the  former  ex- 
ceeding the  latter  by  '9,  and  the  variation  is  also  greater.  The 
mean  index  derived  from  these  two  measurements  varies  from 
86*8  to  76*3;  twelve  of  the  men  are  brachycephalic,  though  five 
of  these  have  an  index  between  80  and  81,  while  the  remaining 
eight  are  mesaticephalic,  only  three  being  between  78  and  80 ;  the 
mean,  80*6,  is  brachycephalic.  If  the  skuUs  of  these  twenty  men 
had  been  examined  instead  of  their  heads,  it  is  probable  that  not 
more  than  four  would  have  been  brachycephalic,  and  that  two 
would  have  been  dolichocephalic ;  the  mean  index  would  certainly 
have  been  mesaticephalic.  The  mean  cephalic  index  of  Dr 
j0rgensen's  series  of  thirty-three  men  above  the  age  of  twenty 
from  the  northern  islands  is  80*4,  and  the  extremes  are  75'4  and 
85*3 ;  and  the  variation,  as  might  be  expected  in  a  larger  series, 
in  slightly  greater  than  in  mine,  while  the  differenBe  between  the 
mean  of  the  series  and  that  of  the  extremes  is  less.  Taking  the 
two  series  together,  the  mean  is  80*7,  and  the  mean  of  the  extremes 


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1903-4.]     Mr  N.  Annandale  on  the  People  of  the  Fa/roes. 


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Proceedings  of  Boyal  Society  of  Edvnbiirgh,  [i 


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1908-4.]     Mr  N.  Annandale  on  the  People  of  the  Faroes.  7 

Table  of  other  Particulars. 


Serial 
Number. 

Name. 

Age. 

Colour 
of  Eyes. 

OiUmr 
of  Hair. 

1 

Andreas  Diurhuas, 
Jacob  Jacobeen,    . 

65 

^Z 

brown 

2 

68 

brown 

8 

Andreas  Jacobsen, 

44 

blue 

brown 

4 

Jacob  MikkelsoD, . 

86 

blue 

fair 

5 

Christian  Christiansen, 

42 

blue 

fair 

6 

Ole  Hansen, 

40 

blue 

brown 

7 

Rasmns  Andreassen,      . 

46 

blue 

fair 

8 

Paul  Nichodemussen,    . 

65 

blue 

fair 

9 

Joen  Gjoueraa, 

44 

blue 

fair 

10 

Paul  Hansen, 

40 

blue 

dark 

11 

Tomas  Yule  Nichalsen, 

87 

blue 

red 

12 

William  Paulsen, . 

55 

bine 

brown 

18 

Daniel  Samuelsen, 

81 

blue 

fair 

14 

Peter  Hana  SiSrensen,    . 

59 

dark  brown 

fair 

15 

Andreas  Olsen,     . 

24 

dark 

16 

Peter  Haraldsen,  . 

63 

bine 

brown 

17 

Hans  Mikkelsen,  . 

52 

dark  grey 

black 

18 

NilsJoensen, 

27 

blue 

fair 

19 

Djone  Isaksen, 

54 

blue 

brown 

20 

Augnst  Mouriksen, 

... 

blue 

brown 

is  81*1.  If  we  consider  75  as  the  upper  limit  of  dolicbocephaly 
and  80  of  mesaticephaly,  eighteen  of  Dr  J0rgensen'8  are  brachy- 
cephalic  and  fifteen  mesaticephalic.  We  may  say,  therefore,  that 
were  a  large  series  of  skulls  of  the  people  of  the  Faroes,  leaving 
the  island  of  Suderoe  out  of  account,  to  be  examined,  it  is  probable 
that  the  great  nm'ority  of  them  would  be  found  to  be  mesati- 
cephalic, while  a  comparatively  small  number  would  be  dolicho- 
cephalic, and  a  less  small  number  brachycephalic.  Dr  J0rgen8en's 
data  show  that  the  proportion  of  individuals  with  dolichocephalic 
or  low  mesaticephalic  heads  would  be  greater  in  Suderoe  than 
elsewhere  in  the  Faroes,  as  is  noted  below. 

The  vertical  height  of  the  head,  measured  between  the  vertex 
and  a  line  joining  one  external  auditory  meatus  to  the  other,  is, 
in  every  individual  in  my  series,  less  than  the  greatest  parieto- 
squamosal  breadth,  and  in  every  case  but  two,  very  considerably  so^ 
Professor  Cunningham's  craniometer  permits  this  measurement  to 
be  taken  on  the  living  person  with  considerable  accuracy,  but  the 
question  how  far  it  corresponds  to  the  basi-bregmatic  height  of  the 
skull  is  a  difficult  one.  The  centre  of  the  external  auditory  meatus 
is  certainly,  in  most  cases,  several  millimetres  higher  than  the 


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8  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh.         [siss. 

basion,  but  the  limits  within  which  this  difference  in  level  varies 
will  be  discussed  later.  At  any  rate,  the  thickness  of  the  soft 
tissues  of  the  scalp  and  the  hair  must  quite  compensate  for  it,  if 
they  do  not  cause  the  vertical  height,  taken  as  described,  to  be 
slightly  greater,  as  is  possible,  than  the  true  basi-bregmatic  height. 
It  is  very  unlikely,  however,  that  in  more  than  two  cases  at  most 
the  basi-bregmatic  height  of  the  individuals  under  discussion 
would  equal  their  parieto^uamosal  breadth  in  the  skull,  and  it 
is  improbable  that  this  would  be  found  to  be  the  case,  could  the 
skulls  be  measured,  in  a  single  instance.  In  the  living  men  the 
mean  breadth-height  index  of  the  head  is  87*9,  and  the  extremes 
are  98*6  and  77*9 ;  the  mean  height  is  136*4,  and  the  extremes 
are  151  and  126  mm. 

The  length  of  the  face,  measured  directly  with  the  callipers 
between  the  bridge  of  the  nose  and  the  tip  of  chin,  varies  from 
134  to  106  mm.,  with  a  mean  of  122*3  mm.,  while  the  interzygo- 
matic  (or  bizygomatic)  breadth  varies  between  156  and  152  mm. ; 
in  two  cases  out  of  twenty  the  length  of  the  face  is  greater  than 
the  bizygomatic  breadth,  and  in  one  the  two  measurements  are 
equaL  The  complete  facial  index,  calculated  from  these  two 
measurements,  varies  from  101*8  to  77*9,  and  the  man  with  the 
shortest  face,  which  is  considerably  shorter  than  any  other  in  the 
series,  has  the  lowest  index,  though  the  man  with  the  longest  face, 
which  is  not  so  much  longer  than  any  other,  has  only  the  third 
index,  the  breadth  being  equal  to  the  length.  The  measurements 
for  the  cephalic  and  vertical  indices  are  easy  to  take  with  a  fair 
degree  of  accuracy,  and  do  not  depend  upon  the  play  of  the  sub- 
ject's features ;  but  it  is  far  otherwise  with  those  for  the  facial 
index — an  unfortunate  fact,  seeing  that,  provided  all  the  measure- 
ments are  taken  by  the  same  person,  no  index  is  of  greater  import- 
ance as  a  racial  character.  It  makes  all  the  difference  in  the 
world  whether  the  length  of  the  face  is  taken  directly,  or  by  pro- 
jection from  the  vertex  to  the  nasion  and  to  the  chin  and  by  sub- 
sequent calculation,  and  it  makes  just  as  much  difference  whether 
the  features  of  the  subject  are  perfectly  at  rest  or  in  any  way 
distorted.  I  am  not  aware  in  what  manner  exactly  Dr  J0rgensen 
obtained  what  he  calls  the  "longitudo  naso-menthalis,"  or  what 
degree  of  pressure  he  exerted  in  measuring  his  *'  latitudo  bizygoma- 


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1903-4.]     Mr  N.  Annandale  on  the  People  of  the  Faroes.  9 

ticusy"  but  the  fact  remains  that  the  facial  index  he  calculates 
from  these  measurements  differs  considerably  from  that  which  I 
obtain  from  the  nasio-mental  length  and  bizygomatic  breadth.  Of 
course  we  measured  different  individuals,  possibly  from  different 
islands — though  at  present  I  am  only  considering  the  thirty-three 
men  from  his  series  to  whom  I  have  referred — and  I  have  known 
the  facial  index  to  be  very  different  in  two  villages  no  further 
apart  than,  say,  Thorshavn  and  Klagsvig,  but  this  was  in  the 
Malay  Peninsula,  in  a  district  where  there  was  far  more  reason  to 
«uspect  admixture  of  foreign  blood  in  different  degrees  in  neigh- 
bouring localities ;  and  the  difference  in  the  figures  between  the 
two  series  from  the  Faroes,  without  including  Suderoe,  is  so  great 
that  I  cannot  help  thinking  that  either  my  own  measurements, 
Dr  J0rgensen's,  or  both,  must  have  been  taken  in  a  manner  not 
altogether  satisfactory.  The  mean  index  of  his  thirty-three  sub- 
jects, calculated  from  the  figures  he  gives,  is  about  11  per  cent, 
lower  than  that  of  my  series ;  and  while  he  makes  a  very  large 
proportion  of  his  subjects  mesoprosopic,^  and  a  considerable  pro- 
portion actually  chamaeoprosopic,^  eleven  out  of  my  twenty  are 
leptoprosopic,^  five  mesoprosopic,  and  only  four  chamseoprosopic. 
In  his  series  no  man  has  a  face  of  which  the  length  even  approaches 
closely  to  the  breadth,  and  the  mean  of  his  series  is  chamaeopro- 
«opic,  while  that  of  mine  is  leptoprosopic.  This  is  a  very  consider- 
able difference ;  and  although  the  facial  index  taken  on  the  skull 
is  probably,  at  any  rate  in  normal  individuals,  considerably  higher 
than  if  taken  on  the  living  individual,  as  the  combined  thickness 
of  the  soft  tissues  on  both  sides  of  the  face  is  probably  greater 
than  that  of  the  soft  tissues  at  the  tip  of  the  chin,  yet  I  am 
inclined  to  think  that  the  Faroe  men  have  narrower  faces  than  Dr 
J0rgensen*s  figures  would  suggest,  though  it  is  quite  possible  that 
my  own  data  may  err  in  the  opposite  direction.  What  strikes  one 
in  a  visual  examination  in  the  faces  of  a  group  of  Faroemen,  as 
distinguishing  them  at  a  glance  from  those  of  the  Icelanders,  and, 
to  a  less  extent,  from  that  of  one  type  of  Dane,  is  the  narrow- 
ness of  the  zygomata,  and  the  oval  outline  longitudinally. 
It  should  be  noted,  however,  that  in  Icelanders  the  cheek  bones 

*  My  usage  of  these  terms  is  that  adopted  by  Sir  William  Turner  in  his 
recent  papers  {Trans.  Boy.  Soe,  Edinburgh,  vol.  xL,  1908,  part  iii.  pp.  605,  606). 


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10  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh.  [j 

are  often  very  prominent,  and  the  face  is  frequently  so  flat,  the- 
eyes  are  so  narrow,  and  the  mouth  is  so  big,  that  one  is  inclined 
to  speculate  as  to  the  possibility  of  environment  having  induced 
some  latent  Mongoloid  strain,  inherited  from  prehistoric  times,  ere 
Iceland  was  colonised,  to  develop,  or  even  whether  environment 
alone  could  possibly  have  produced  a  similarity  to  the  Esquimaux, 
not  inherited  at  all.  However,  the  time  has  not  come  to  settle,  or 
even  to  seriously  discuss,  such  questions,  and,  in  any  case,  they  are 
beyond  the  point  in  dealing  with  the  Faroemen,  in  whom  there  is 
little,  if  any,  trace  of  any  such  phenomenon.  All  that  can  be  said 
with  reference  to  the  point  at  issue  is,  that  two  observers  who  have 
examined  the  faces  of  the  Faroemen  get  very  different  results  with 
regard  to  the  facial  index,  and  that  there  is  reason  to  believe 
that  were  a  large  number  of  Icelanders  examined,  they  would  be 
foimd  to  have  considerably  broader  and  flatter  faces  than  the 
Faroemen. 

The  bigonial  breadth  is  another  measurement  that  depends  very 
largely  upon  the  individual  observer,  and  probably  has  a  very  dif- 
ferent relationship  to  the  same  measurement  on  the  skull  in  different 
subjects.  In  taking  it  on  the  living  person  it  is  by  no  means  easy 
to  regulate  the  pressure  exerted  by  the  points  of  the  callipers  upon 
the  soft  tissues,  and  the  degree  or  absence  of  such  pressure  makes 
a  very  great  difference  in  the  results  obtained,  while  the  extent  to 
which  the  muscles  which  work  the  jaw  are  developed  also  influences- 
them  considerably.  Personally,  I  now  make  it  a  practice  to  draw 
the  skin  as  tight  as  possible  in  taking  this  measurement,  and  to 
press  in  the  points  of  the  callipers  as  far  as  they  will  go  without 
injuring  the  subject,  believing  that  in  this  way  it  is  possible  to  get 
a  more  uniform  standard  of  comparison,  both  as  regards  different 
individuals  and  as  regards  the  difference  between  the  skull  and  the. 
living  head.  It  is  probable,  however,  that  many  anthropometrists 
take  care  to  exert  as  little  pressure  as  possible,  though  it  is  obvious 
that  if  this  be  done,  the  measurement  must  vary  even  more  with 
the  muscular  development  and  the  amount  of  adipose  tissue  than 
^vith  the  true  breadth  of  the  skeletal  support.  The  mean  bigonial' 
breadth  in  my  series,  taken  as  described,  is  lll'S  mm. — 21*6  mm. 
less  than  the  mean  bizygomatic  breadth — and  the  extremes  are  128^ 
and  100.     The  bigonial  index,  that  is,  the  index  obtained  by  the^^ 


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1908-4.]     Mr  N.  Annandale  on  the  People  of  the  Faroes.        11 

,    bigonial  breadth  X 100  .        .,.  ,...., 

fonnma  -^. rr-r — ttv—  ,  vanes  witnm  narrower  limits  than 

bizygomatic  breadth   ' 

the  facial  index,  or  than  either  of  the  separate  measurements  from 

which  it  is  calculated,  showing  that  the  longitudinal  shape  of 

the  face  is  fairly  constant ;  the  mean  is  83*87,  and  the  extremes 

are  92*6  and  76*8.     This  is  by  no  means  a  high  index,  and  it 

probably  shows  that  the  faces  of  the  Faroemen,  as  might  be 

expected  from  a  visual  examination,  narrow  considerably  from 

above  downwards,  though  they  are  by  no  means  broad  across  the 

cheek  bones ;  but  it  must  be  borne  in  mind  that  my  method  of 

taking  the  bigonial  breadth  is  very  possibly  not  the  general  one, 

and  1  have  been  able  to  find  very  little  information  as  to  how 

it  is  obtained  by  other  anthropometrists. 

The  measurements  of  the  nose,  again,  seem  to  vary  considerably 
with  the  individual  observer ;  and,  as  the  figures  which  express 
them  are  comparatively  small,  the  variation  in  the  index  is 
magnified  proportionately  by  an  error  or  difference  of  method. 
In  European  peoples  there  is  rarely  any  difficulty  in  finding  the 
points  of  measurement  with  fair  approximation,  but  this  is 
always  provided  that  the  subject's  face  is  in  a  state  of  perfect 
repose,  and  that  no  imdue  pressure  is  exerted  on  the  callipers, 
especially  in  taking  the  breadth.  In  my  opinion,  it  is  quite 
impossible  for  the  ordinary  observer  to  take  these  measurements  to 
within  half  a  millimetre,  as  it  has  been  suggested  by  Professor 
Haddon  (2)  that  he  should  do.  These  things  being  so,  1  am  surprised 
at  the  extent  of  agreement,  rather  than  disagreement,  with  regard 
to  the  nasal  index,  as  estimated  on  the  living  person  by  different 
observers.  The  mean  nasal  index  of  my  series  of  Faroemen  is 
65*66,  and  the  extremes  are  78*8  and  55*0,  so  that  they  appear 
to  be  a  very  distinctly  leptorhine  people.  The  mean  of  Dr 
J0rgensen's  series  from  the  northern  islands  is  67*5,  and  the 
extremes  are  81*1  and  58'6.  In  shape  the  nose  is  generally 
straight  and  prominent,  the  rather  flat,  coarse  type  common  in 
Iceland  occurring  but  seldom,  and  the  Roman  or  aquiline  being 
rarely  if  ever  seen,  in  the  Faroes. 

As  already  stated,  the  auriculo-nasal  and  the  auriculo-alveolar 
lengths  were  taken  by  means  of  Professor  Cunningham's 
craniometer    between   the  external  auditory  meatus  (or   rather 


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12  •  Proceedings  of  Boyal  Society  of  Edinburgh,  [sbss. 

the  line  joining  the  centre  of  this  opening  on  one  side  of 
the  head  to  the  same  point  on  the  other)  and  the  hridge  of  the 
nose,  and  the  central  point  of  the  upper  jaw  between  the  two 
central  incisor  teeth,  respectively,  the  upper  lip  being  lifted  out 
of  the  way  in  the  latter  measurement.  The  index  calculated  from 
these  two  measurements  appeared  to  make  the  people  far  more  prog- 
nathic than  I  would  have  expected,  if  the  centre  of  the  auricular 
orifice,  as  has  often  been  assumed,  corresponded,  as  far  as  the  measure- 
ments from  which  the  gnathic  and  vertical  indices  are  calculated  are 


J) 

Fig.  2. — Diagram  illustrating  the  relation  of  measurements  taken  from  the 
basiou  to  those  taken  from  the  auricular  point.  A = basion.  B = auricular 
point     C = nasion.     D = alveolar  point 

concerned,  in  some  degree  with  the  basion;  and,  at  Professor 
Cunningham's  suggestion,  I  commenced  a  series  of  measurement  on 
ekulls  in  the  Anatomical  Museum  of  the  University  of  Edinburgh, 
in  order  to  see  how  far  this  assumption  was  legitimate.  Before  I 
had  gone  far  in  this  investigation — indeed,  on  the  same  morning  on 
which  it  was  commenced — the  solution  of  the  problem  became 
obvious,  with  the  result  that  I  find  that  the  two  points  do  not 
correspond  with  one  another,  for  the  following  reasons,  which  are 
made  clear  by  the  diagram  (fig.  2).  In  every  skull  examined  I 
discovered  that  while  the  centre  of  the  auricular  orifice  was  several 
millimetres  higher  than  the  basion,  it  was  also  several  millimetres 
posterior  to  it,  so  that  while  the  auriculo-nasal  length  and  the  basi- 


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1903-4.]     Mr  N.  Annandale  on  the  People  of  the  Faroes.        13 

nasal  length  were  approximately  equal,  the  former  being  very  slightly 
the  longer  of  the  two,  the  aoriculo-alveolar  length  was  considerably 
longer  than  the  basi-alveolar.  In  five  Irish  skulls  the  difference 
between  the  vertical  index  when  the  height  was  taken  from  the 
basion  and  when  it  was  taken  from  the  auricular  point,  that  is  to 
say,  from  the  centre  of  the  external  auditory  meatus,  varied  from 
2*9  to  6*3,  so  that  it  is  very  evident  that  the  two  measurements 
have  little  relationship  to  one  another,  except  that  the  auricular 
height  is,  probably  in  all  cases,  the  less  of  the  two.  In  the  same 
skulls  the  two  gnathic  indices  obtained  in  a  similar  way  diflfered  by 
from  5*4  to  14*7,  but  in  this  case  the  auricular  index  was  the  greater 
of  the  two.  It  must  be  remembered,  however,  that  measurements 
taken  on  the  living  head  diflTer  considerably  from  those  taken  on 
the  skull ;  while  the  thickness  of  the  soft  tissues  of  the  scalp  and 
of  the  hair  must  go  far  in  bringing  the  auriculo-bregmatic  height 
up  to  the  same  figure  as  that  of  the  basi-bregmatic,  if  they  do  not, 
in  some  cases,  cause  the  former  to  surpass  the  latter,  yet  the 
comparatively  greater  thickness  of  the  soft  tissues  and  of  the  hair 
on  the  occiput  and  of  the  forehead  must  again  reduce  the  vertical 
index,  in  whatever  way  it  is  obtained,  to  a  result  of  which  the 
degree  cannot  ever  be  arrived  at  with  exactitude.  In  the 
gnathic  index,  on  the  other  hand,  the  soft  tissues  that  cover  the 
nasion  must  make  the  index  on  the  skull  considerably  higher  than 
one  obtained  from  the  same  measurements  taken  on  the  living 
head,  and  it  is  obvious  that  thickness  of  the  fleshy  coating  on  the 
nasion  differs  considerably  in  different  persons;  so  that  persons 
with  thin  faces  will  have,  ceteris  paribus^  a  gnathic  index  higher 
than  that  of  persons  with  fleshy  faces.  It  is  therefore  worth  noting 
that  the  Faroeman  in  my  table  with  the  highest  gnathic  index  was 
a  very  thin  and  unhealthy  man,  who  suffered  greatly  from  asthma, 
I  do  not  see  that  there  is  any  possibility  of  reducing  measurements 
taken  on  the  living  head,  as  far  as  the  vertical  and  gnathic  indices 
are  concerned,  to  a  common  denominator  with  those  of  the  skull, 
no  matter  what  the  points  may  be  from  which  the  lengths  are 
measured,  and  it  would  be  dif&cult  to  persuade  craniologists  to 
give  up  measuring  from  the  basion,  even  though  the  auricular 
point  is  one  which  can  be  found  with  equal  ease  in  both  cases. 
The  statures  given  in  my  table  can  only  be  regai-ded  as  approxi- 


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14  Proceedings  of  Boyal  Society  of  Edinburgh.         [i 

mate,  for  all  of  them  were  taken,  as  mentioned  above,  on  men  who 
were  not  barefooted,  and  allowance  had  to  be  made  for  different 
kinds  of  footgear  in  different  individuals;  for  these  reasons  I 
have  only  given  the  results  in  centimetres,  though  the  measure- 
ments were  originally  taken  in  millimetres,  and  I  believe  that  when 
recorded  thus  they  are  fairly  accurate.  The  statures  seem  to  fall 
into  two  very  distinct  series,  those  of  170  cm.  and  above  and 
those  below  that  figure ;  it  is  noteworthy  that  the  last  four  men 
-examined  fall  within  the  former  category,  showing  how  necessary 
a  large  series  of  measurements  must  always  be  in  estimating  the 
mean  stature  of  a  race.  Dr  J0rgensen's  series  of  thirty-three  men 
from  the  northern  islands  gives  a  mean  of  169  cm.,  with  extremes 
of  155  and  178  mm.  Again,  a  very  serious  discrepancy  exists 
between  my  measurements  and  his,  for  my  mean  is  166  cm.,  and 
my  extremes  are  157  and  176  cm.,  but  I  have  not  been  able  to 
discover  whether  his  measurements  were  taken  on  barefooted 
subjects,  or,  if  not,  whether  allowance  was  made  for  footgear.  In 
any  case,  a  visual  inspection  of  the  Faroemen  makes  it  obvious  that 
they  are  a  very  short  race,  perhaps  as  a  result  of  in-breeding, 
though  they  are  robust  and  well-built,  and  not,  so  far  as  I  have 
been  able  to  discover,  degenerate  in  any  other  way.  It  is 
difficult,  however,  to  discover  to  what  extent  insanity  prevails 
among  them,  as  all  bad  cases  of  madness  are  removed  to  Denmark; 
but  on  the  little  island  of  Naalsoe,  where  several  families,  con- 
sidering themselves  to  be  descendants  of  the  kings  of  Scotland, 
Tefused  to  marry  the  inhabitants  of  other  islands,  imbecility 
and  total  hereditary  deafness  are  said  to  have  been  unusually 
common  (3). 

I  have  not  thought  it  worth  while  to  record  my  observations  on 
the  skin  colour  in  detail,  as  I  believe  that  this  is  due  far  more  to 
the  degree  of  exposure  to  which  the  individual  has  been  subjected, 
to  climate,  and  even  to  altitude,  than  to  race,  at  any  rate  within 
reasonable  limits ;  for  no  amoimt  of  protection  from  the  elements, 
no  cold,  and  no  altitude  would  make  a  Negro  white,  or  even  give 
;an  Italian  the  complexion  of  a  Dane.  All  that  can  be  said  on 
this  point  as  regards  the  Faroemen  is,  that  those  men  who 
have  dark  hair  have  also  a  dark  skin,  which  in  some  cases  is  as 
-dark  as  that  of  an  Italian,  and  that  such  persons  have  frequently 


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1908-4.]     Mr  N.  Annandale  on  the  People  of  the  Faroes,        15 

^features  ^  more  marked,  and  especially  a  more  pronounced  promi- 
nence, often  combined  with  a  tendency  to  be  hooked,  of  the  nose, 
than  the  m^ority  of  their  fellow  islanders. 

It  is  probable  that  the  twenty  persons  examined  give  a  very  fair 
approximation,  at  any  rate  as  far  as  the  island  of  Stromoe  is  con- 
cerned, to  the  general  colour  of  the  hair  and  eyes  of  the  Faroemen, 
l)ut  the  series  of  observations  is  not  sufficiently  extensive  to  permit 
the  calculation  of  a  percentage  index  of  nigrescence  on  Beddoe's 
system  (4).  They  show,  however,  that  while  the  great  proportion  of 
the  people  have  light  eyes  and  light  or  neutral  hair,  there  is  a 
distinct  dark  element  among  them,  which,  as  Dr  J0rgensen  has 
shown,  and  as  Landt  (5)  had  anticipated,  is  more  pronounced  in 
Suderoe  than  in  the  northern  islands  of  the  group.  The  danger  of 
•drawing  conclusions,  however,  regarding  this  point  is  well  illus- 
trated by  a  fact  in  the  history  of  a  family  living  near  Thorshavn. 
Several  members  of  this  family  are  very  dark  indeed,  and  have 
:almo6t  an  Oriental  appearance,  which  I  was  inclined,  before  I 
knew  their  history,  to  put  down  as  due  to  an  extreme  development 
•among  them  of  the  dark  type  that  occurs  sporadically  in  all 
Scandinavian  countries,  and  is  far  from  xmcommon  in  the  Faroes 
and  Iceland.  Quite  incidentally,  however,  I  learot  that  the  grand- 
mother of  the  present  head  of  the  family  came  from  somewhere  in 
Eastern  Europe,  and  that  her  grandchildren  took  after  her.  It 
would  seem,  on  prirnd  facie  evidence,  that  hardly  any  place  in  the 
world  was  more  unlikely  to  harbour  an  Oriental  European  than  the 
Faroes,  but  facts  are  liable  to  run  counter  to  evidence  of  the  kind, 
-and  it  is,  moreover,  certain  that  this  unlikely  importation,  who  was 
met  by  her  husband  when  both  were  being  educated,  I  believe  in 
Switzerland,  has  proved,  in  zoological  language,  prepotent,  and 
may  conceivably  have  an  ultimate  effect  on  the  population  of  the 
Faroes,  though,  the  present  head  of  the  family  having  married  an 
Icelander,  also  met  in  the  course  of  education,  the  problem  becomes 
«ven  more  complicated.  I  may  also  say  that  this  family  is  one 
which  prides  itself  on  keeping  up  the  old  customs  of  the  Faroes, 
though  some  people  in  Thorshavn  have  told  me  that  the  conspicuous 

1  Some  ezoellent  photographs  of  Faroemen  are  reproduced  in  a  paper  just 
pabliflbed  by  Dr  Bormeister  Norburg  {Oldbus,  vol.  Ixxxiv.,  1908,  No.  14, 
pp.  219-222).     Oct.  29. 


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Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Ediriburgh,  [sess. 


'old-fashioned*  costume,  which  the  men  of  the  family  delight  to  wear 
on  festive  occasions,  is  partly  the  result  of  their  own  imagination. 

Having  now  dealt  with  the  measurements  and  observations  in 
my  tables  severally,  I  propose  to  inquire  whether  there  are 
any  obvious  correlations  between  them,  such  as  can  be  shown  in 
even  so  small  a  number  of  individuals  as  twenty.  If  we  take  the 
mean  stature  of  the  five  tallest  men,  the  mean  stature  of  the  five 
who  come  nearest  to  them,  of  the  next  five,  and  finally  of  the  five 
shortest,  and  if  we  take  the  mean  of  all  the  head  indices  of  the 
same  five  individuals  in  each  of  the  four  batches,  we  get  the 
following  results : — 


Stature. 


Fire  tallest. 
Next  five,  . 
Next  five,  . 
Five  shortest, 


173-4 
167-4 
163-4 
159-8 


Cephalio 
Index. 

Vertical 
Index. 

Facial 
Index. 

94-5 

Nasal 
Index. 

Gnathic 
Index. 

93-9 

82-0 

70-4 

63-0 

81-1 

72-0 

88-1 

68-5 

98-4 

79-8 

70-9 

90-1 

66-4 

96-9 

79-3 

70-6 

94-4 

64-8 

99-8 

As  one  figure  is  apt  to  throw  out  the  mean  in  batches  so  small 
as  five,  we  may  further  consider  the  head  indices  in  the  same  way 
from  the  point  of  view  of  the  cephalic  index,  as  the  five  tallest 
men  are  not  those  who  have  the  five  shortest  indices : — 


Cephalic 
Index. 

Vertical 
Index. 

Facial 
Index. 

Nasal 
Index. 

Gnathic 
Index. 

Five  shortest  heads, 

84-4 

70-6 

90-7 

70-6 

94-0 

Next  five, 

81-1 

71-1 

93-0 

68-3 

98-6 

Next  five. 

79-3 

70-8 

90-2 

61-4 

96-8 

Five  longest  heads,  . 

77-2 

69-8 

91-2 

67-9 

100-3 

From  these  tables  it  would  seem  that  there  is  a  certain  relation- 
ship between  the  stature  and  the  shape  of  the  head,  and  also, 
possibly,  between  the  cephalic  index  and  the  gnathic  index. 
J0rgensen*8  data  for  Suderoe  appear  to  indicate  no   connection 


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1903-4.]     Mr  N.  Annandale  on  the  People  of  the  Faroes.        17 

between  the  stature  and  the  cephalic  index  in  that  island,  but  it 
is  clear  that  a  longer  head  and  a  shorter  stature  differentiate  the 
population  of  Suderoe  as  a  whole  from  that  of  the  northern  islands, 
for  all  observers  agree  that  the  former  are  distinguished  from  the 
latter  by  being  smaller  and  darker,  while  the  following  details 
exhibit  tbe  diflference  in  the  cephalic  index  in  a  sufficiently  striking 
manner.  Dr  J0rgensen,  who  adopts  the  number  77*5  as  the  lower 
limit  of  mesaticephaly,  states  that  of  the  adult  males  of  Suderoe 
44  per  cent,  are  brachycephalic,  27  per  cent,  mesaticephalic, 
and  29  per  cent,  dolichocephalic.  If  my  twenty  observations 
from  Thorshavn  are  combined  with  his  thirty -three  from  the 
northern  islands,  and  if  the  same  standard  of  brachycephaly  is 
adopted  for  the  sake  of  comparison,  we  get  as  a  result  that  in  the 
two  series  together,  decimals  omitted,  56  per  cent,  are  brachy- 
cephalic, 32  per  cent,  mesaticephalic,  and  12  per  cent,  dolicho- 
cephalic. 

Part  II.— Historical. 

Before  discussing  the  history  of  the  Faroes  and  the  traditions 
current  among  the  people  as  regards  their  origin,  it  may  not  be 
superfluous  to  consider  for  a  moment  the  personal  names  given  in 
my  table.  With  two  exceptions  the  second  or  third  name  of  each 
man  is  a  patronymic,  but  one  adapted  to  modern  Danish  orthog- 
raphy, and  become  a  regular  surname,  which,  at  any  rate  in 
Thorshavn,  is  not  changed  either  from  generation  to  generation  or 
according  to  the  sex  of  the  person  who  bears  it.  Mr  Henry 
Balfour  has  called  my  attention  to  the  fact  that  the  initials  carved 
on  objects  from  the  Faroes,  even  if  these  be  women's  belongings, 
are  the  first  letters  of  Christian  names  and  surnames,  not,  as  would 
be  the  case  on  Icelandic  objects,  those  of  a  Christian  name,  another 
Christian  name  and  an  8  (for  8on)  or  a  (i  (for  ddttir),  according  to 
the  sex  of  the  owner,  and  that  there  is  no  special  indication  of  the 
name  of  the  woman's  husband,  as  would  be  the  case  on  objects 
from  the  country  districts  of  Norway.  In  a  list  of  names  of  people  ^ 
living  in  the  Faroes  between  the  years  1600  and  1709  there  appear 
to  be  but  a  few  real  surnames,  but  married  women  adopt  their 
husbands'  patronymics  without  change ;  single  women  are  known 

*  N.  Andersen,  FcBr^eme,  1600-1709.     Copenhagen,  1895. 
PROC.  ROY.  SOC.  EDIN. — VOL.  XXV.  2 


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18  •  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh,  [«ess. 

by  their  personal  names,  followed  by  those  of  their  fathers  with 
datiir  added ;  men  are  for  the  most  part  referred  to  in  the  same 
manner,  but  with  sen  instead  of  dattir,  while  occasionally  they 
adopt  the  name  of  their  place  of  abode  or  birth  instead  of  a 
patronymic.  In  the  present  list  one  man  has  a  surname  which  has 
probably  been  introduced  from  southern  Denmark  or  from  the 
Schleswig-Holstein  provinces,  namely  Djurhuus,  while  another  has 
simply  taken  the  name  of  his  birthplace,  Gjoueraa,  a  small  village 
on  the  island  of  Stromoe,  surnames  being  by  no  means  a  fixed 
institution  in  the  country  districts  of  the  Faroes  even  at  the 
present  day,  though  they  have  gone  far  further  in  this  direction 
than  in  Iceland.  It  is  also  worthy  of  note  that  a  very  large  pro- 
portion of  the  names  in  my  list  are  Biblical,  and  only  a  very  small 
proportion  Norse;  while  in  a  similar  number  of  names  from 
Iceland  the  majority  would  probably  be  found  to  be  such  as  Gisli, 
Herjolfur,  Arni,  or  the  popular  Magnus  —a  name  introduced  into 
Scandinavian  countries  through  a  misunderstanding  of  the  latinized 
name  of  Charlemagne,  a  very  popular  hero  in  the  ballads  of  the 
Faroes  as  in  other  Norse  folk-lore. 

The  Faroes,  we  know,  were  colonised  by  vikings  of  Norse  ex- 
traction, many  of  whom  were  also  descended  from  the  Iberian  chief- 
tains of  the  Hebrides  and  Ireland.  There  is  no  reason  whatever  to 
think  that  the  islands  had  other  human  denizens  when  the  vikings 
came,  except  perhaps  occasional  anchorites  seeking  to  outdo  the 
records  of  their  fellows  in  the  way  of  finding  *  solitudes.'  There 
is  good  reason,  however,  to  believe  that  Faroe,  or,  as  it  is  properly 
spelt,  Fseroe,  means  *  sheep  island,' though  Landt  (5)  gives  other 
derivations,  and  that  the  group  got  its  present  name  because  the 
vikings  found  a  breed  of  sheep  already  established  there;  and  if 
this  assumption  l»e  correct,  the  fact  is  difficult  of  explanation 
without  supposing  either  that  the  island  had  already  been 
colonised  by  some  race  which  had  disappeared,  or  else  that  the 
sheep  had  originally  been  accidentally  introduced  by  a  wreck,  as 
was  the  case  with  the  "great"  or  brown  rat  (5)  in  1768.  The  bree<l 
appears  to  have  been  similar  to  that  of  Soa  in  St  Kilda,  but  is 
now  quite  extinct,  having  been  purposely  extenninated  by  the 
islanders ;  it  could  hardly  have  come  spontaneously  into  being  on 
small  islands  separated  by  a  very  deep  channel  from  any  consider- 


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1903-4.]      Mr  K  Annandale  on  the  People  of  the  Faroes,        19 

Able  mass  of  land,  but  its  origin  must,  for  the  present,  remain  a 
mystery,  and  its  existence  in  no  way  militates  against  the  view 
that  the  Faroes  were  devoid  of  human  inhabitants  when  they  were 
first  visited  by  the  wanderers  of  more  or  less  mixed  race  who  are 
known  in  British  history  as  the  *  Danes,'  although  comparatively 
few  of  them  had  any  connection  with  Denmark.  Professor  York 
Powell  (6),  in  the  introduction  to  his  translation  of  the  Fareyinga 
SagOj  shows  that  during  the  early  history  of  the  Faroes  their 
I^orse  families  were  closely  related  to  several  of  the  Icelandic 
chiefs  both  by  blood  and  marriage,  and  it  is  probable  that  the 
Faroes  were  colonised  in  the  first  half  of  the  tenth  century,  a  little 
later  than  Iceland,  which  commenced  to  be  peopled  in  874  a.d. 

In  Icelandic  history  the  people  known  to  the  vikings  as  ^  men  of 
the  West,'  that  is  to  say,  Irishmen  and  inhabitants  of  the  outer 
Hebrides,  occasionally  make  their  appearance,  chiefly  as  captives  of 
war ;  it  is  to  them  that  the  Westmann  Isles,  ofif  the  south  coast  of 
Iceland,  owe  their  name,  a  party  of  mutinous  slaves  having 
occupied  them  after  slaying  their  master  on  the  mainland,  whence 
his  avengers  soon  came  to  exterminate  the  murderers.  In  the 
Faroes,  Westmannhavn,  a  fine  natural  harbour  near  the  north-west 
comer  of  Stromoe,  is  said  to  have  at  one  time  been  a  favourite 
resort  of  the  Western  ships,  while  Saxen,  a  place  with  a  similar 
but  smaller  harbour  a  few  miles  to  the  north,  is  believed  to  have 
attracted  Scotch  and  Dutch  smugglers  until  comparatively  recent 
times,  when  the  land-locked  bay  became  silted  up  in  the  course  of 
a  single  storm.  The  people  of  Suderoe  claim  themselves  to  be  of 
Western  descent,  and  a  curious  story  (3),  told  me  some  years  ago  in 
Stromoe  to  account  for  their  physical  and  dialectic  peculiarities, 
makes  them  to  be  descended  from  an  Irish  captain's  wife  who  was 
kidnapped  from  her  husband's  vessel  by  a  native  chief.  The  story 
has  evidently  been  embellished  by  an  ignorant  person  in  order  to 
account  for  the  name  of  a  village  in  Suderoe,  but,  for  all  that,  may 
contain  a  germ  of  truth. 

A  far  more  circumstantial  tradition  links  the  island  of  Naalsoe 
with  Scotland.  Certain  families  on  this  island,  which  has  a  popu- 
lation at  the  present  day  of  about  two  hundred  souls,  believe  im- 
plicitly that  they  are  the  direct  descendants  of  *  Jacobus  the  Second 
of  Scotland,'  whose  daughter  eloped  with  a  page  of  her  father's 


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20  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh,  [sbss. 

court  named  Eric  and  came  with  a  great  following  to  the  Faroes. 
Naalsoe  had  been  utterly  depopulated  by  the  Black  Death,  which 
raged  in  the  islands  at  that  date,  and  so  the  princess  and  her 
followers  settled  there.  There 'she  bore  a  son  to  Eric.  Years  later 
her  father  followed  her,  and  when  he  came  to  Naalsoe  he  saw  his 
grandson,  whom  he  recognised  because  he  was  very  like  her, 
playing  ou  the  shore.  Struck  by  the  boy's  beauty  and  manly 
appearance,  he  offered  to  forgive  his  daughter  and  her  lover  if 
they  would  return  to  Scotland  with  him.  This  they  refused  to  do> 
remaining  in  the  Faroes  and  having  many  other  children  there. 
The  first-bom  sou  fell  on  a  knife  with  which  he  was  playing  and 
killed  himself,  then  the  king  of  Denmark  confiscated  half  the 
island  from  the  princess  because  she  was  a  Boman  Catholic,  but 
she  and  her  other  children,  her  followers  and  their  descendants, 
peopled  the  island,  and  some  of  her  descendants  still  refuse  to 
marry  outside  the  families  who  claim  her  as  their  ancestress.  The 
present  amptmand  of  the  Faroes,  the  first  native  to  be  appointed 
to  this  position  by  the  Danish  Government,  is  of  her  kin.  The 
whole  story  is,  from  the  point  of  history,  ridiculous,  but  I  am  in- 
clined to  agree  with  Robert  Chambers  (7),  who  heard  the  outlines  of 
the  tradition  on  a  visit  to  the  Faroes  in  the  middle  of  last  century^ 
that  in  the  main  it  may  be  true,  any  foreign  lady  of  birth  and 
wealth  being  easily  transformed  into  a  'king's  daughter'  in  a 
region  so  remote  as  the  Faroes. 

All  these  floating  traditions,  in  any  case,  probably  set  forth  a 
real  fact,  viz.,  that  there  was,  subsequent  to  their  original  colonisa- 
tion, a  considerable  influx  of  blood  other  than  Norse  into  the 
Faroes ;  but  whether  the  immigrants  came  as  single  ^individuals  or 
in  parties  we  cannot  say  with  any  more  accuracy  than  we  can  give 
their  advent  an  exact  date.  Throughout  the  later  Middle  Ages, 
and  as  late  as  1874,  the  crown  trading  monopoly,  instituted  by  the 
kings  of  Denmark,  shut  off  the  Faroes  from  commerce  with  Iceland 
on  the  one  hand,  and  with  the  rest  of  Europe  on  the  other ;  and 
though  extensive  smuggling  doubtless  occurred,  smuggling  is  not  a 
form  of  trade  likely  to  lead  to  intermarriage.  The  fishermen  of 
the  Faroes  met  with  fishing-smacks  from  Shetland  on  the  high 
seas,  and  frequently  hired  themselves  out  to  Shetland  shipowners, 
learning  to  speak  English  from  their  mates,  but  they  came  home 


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190B-4.]      Mr  N.  Annandale  on  the  People  of  the  Faroes,        21 

with  a  scorn  of  Shetlanders  as  intense  as  the  Icelanders'  scorn  of 
faroemen,  and  it  is  worthy  of  note  that  the  old  dialect  of  Shetland, 
recently  extinct,  took  a  totally  different  line  of  development  from 
that  of  the  Faroes  (8),  though  both  sprang  in  the  early  Middle  Ages 
from  the  old  Norse,  a  language  practically  identical  with  the 
Icelandic  of  to-day.  Young  Faroe  men  and  women  who  are 
anxious  to  make  a  little  money  still  visit  the  west  coast  of  Iceland 
during  the  fishing  season,  to  help  on  the  boats  and  with  the  pre- 
paration of  salted  fish,  but  the  men  rarely,  if  ever,  bring  home  an 
Icelandic  wife,  and  if  a  girl  marries  an  Icelander  she  stays  in 
Iceland. 

As  I  have  frequently  heard  it  hinted  that  the  dark  strain  in  the 
population  of  the  Faroes,  especially  of  Suderoe,  is  due  either  to 
casual  intercourse  with  Breton  fishermen  or  to  the  raids  of  the 
Barbary  corsairs,  it  may  be  well  to  consider  whether  there  can  be 
any  truth  in  either  or  both  of  these  insinuations.  With  regard  to 
the  Bretons*  visits  to  the  Faroes  I  have  no  information,  but  I  have 
never  heard  it  said  that  any  of  them  settled  in  the  islands ;  and 
the  Faroe  women  are  extremely  modest,  viewing  the  custom,  so 
common  in  Iceland,  of  postponing  marriage  until  a  child  is  bom  or 
expected,  with  abhorrence.  In  Iceland,  however,  it  is  just  possible 
that  temporary  connections  formed  between  these  foreign  seamen 
and  native  women  may  have  made  dark  complexions  commoner  in 
^Reykjavik,  as  they  certainly  appear  on  casual  inspection  to  be, 
than  in  the  country  districts,  although,  of  course,  a  dark  strain  ex- 
isted among  the  vikings  themselves,  and  still  exists  in  parts  of 
Norway  where  Bretons  and  Algerians  alike  have  been  unknown, 
whether  as  a  remnant  of  the  aboriginal  population,  as  is  very 
possible,  or  as  a  result  of  intermarriage  in  the  ninth  century  or 
earlier  between  the  Norse  raiders  and  their  Irish  captives,  is  very 
hard  to  say ;  probably  its  origin  is  mixed,  perhaps  even  more 
mixed  than  has  been  suggested. 

As  regards  the  Barbary  corsairs,  I  am  doubtful  whether  they 
ever  raided  the  Faroes.  There  is  a  tradition,  it  is  true,  on  Naalsoe 
to  the  effect  that  once,  while  all  the  men  of  that  island  were  away 
at  the  fishing,  the  *  Turks '  visited  their  homes  and  seized  their 
women,  but  the  women  leapt  into  the  sea  from  the  ships  to  which 
they  were  hurried,  and  the  *  Turks '  cut  off  their  breasts  in  the 


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22  Froceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh,  [sww. 

water,  so  that  they  sank  and  were  drowued.  Mr  Stanley  Lane- 
Poole  (9),  moreover,  in  his  Barhary  Corsairs^  states  that  Murfid,  a 
German  renegade,  "took  three  Algerine  ships  as  far  north  as 
Denmark  and  Iceland,  whence  he  carried  oflF  four  hundred,  some 
say  eight  hundred,  captives  .  .  .  ,"  and  I  have  heard  it  stated  in 
the  Faroes  that  this  expedition  also  visited  these  islands.  Some 
years  ago,  while  staying  in  the  Westmann  Isles,  I  took  the  trouble 
to  translate  the  contemporary  Icelandic  accounts  of  Murad's  raid, 
and  of  another,  led  by  three  Moorish  captains,  which  also  took 
place  on  the  coast  of  Iceland  in  the  same  summer,  that  of  1627. 
These  records  (10)  were  collected  and  printed  in  Reykjavik  about 
half  a  century  ago.  They  contain  no  mention  of  a  visit  to  the 
Faroes,  and  show  that  it  is  exceedingly  improbable  that  any  admix- 
ture of  Algerian  blood  now  exists  even  in  Iceland.  Between  three 
and  four  hundred  persons  were  taken  prisoners  by  the  two  expedi- 
tions, and  not  more  than  forty,  some  of  whom  were  women,  got  back 
to  Iceland,  the  great  majority  being  from  the  Westmann  Isles,  to 
which  those  who  were  ransomed  by  their  friends  or  by  the  sub- 
scription raised  for  the  purpose  in  Denmark  returned.  It  is  just 
possible  that  the  women  may  have  brought  home  with  them 
children  by  Algerian  masters,  but  it  is  exceedingly  improbable 
that  this  would  have  been  permitted ;  and  even  if  they  did,  those 
who  returned  to  the  Westmann  Isles,  at  any  rate,  have  almost 
certainly  left  no  descendants  behind  them,  for  all  children,  almost 
without  exception,  who  were  born  there  died  within  a  fortnight 
after  birth  of  tetantis  neonatorum'^  until  quite  recently,  and  the 
islands  were  constantly  being  repeopled  from  the  north  of  Iceland, 
a  region  which  the  corsairs  did  not  visit  (11,  12). 

Conclusions. 

?^y  object,  as  regards  the  first  part  of  this  paper,  has  been 
critical  rather  than  constructive,  for  I  do  not  believe  that 
measurements  on  the  living  person,  even  in  series  of  considerable 
magnitude,  can  give  more  than  a  rough  sketch  of  the  physical 

^  The  islanders  ascribe  the  recent  extinction  of  this  disease  to  the  fact  that 
while  new-born  children  were  formerly  laid  on  a  ma^s  of  uncovered  feathers, 
they  are  now  placed  on  a  covered  mattress. 


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1903-4  ]     Mr  N.  Annandale  on  the  People  of  the  Faroes.         23 

characters  of  a  race,  and  we  do  not  yet  know  at  all  what  is  the 
physical  result  of  crosses  in  the  human  species.  The  fact  noted 
r^arding  the  Faroe  family  whose  ancestress  came  from  Eastern 
Europe  is  of  interest  in  this  connection,  although  I  am  not 
able  to  give  statistical  details,  for  it  shows  how  necessary 
ifc  is  that  anthropologists  should  pay  attention  to  that  mysterious 
quality  inherent  in  certain  races  and  certain  individuals 
—  prepotency.  Personally,  I  must  express  the  great  debt  I 
owe  to  Professor  D.  J.  Cunningham  for  calling  my  attention  to 
this  factor  in  ethnology,  though  it  does  not  make  the  ethnologist's 
task  the  easier.  With  regard  to  the  measurements  themselves, 
it  must  be  remarked  how  great  an  allowance  must  always  be 
made  for  the  idiosyncrasy  of  the  observer  in  anthropometry  on 
the  living  person.  Some  men  naturally  measure  too  short,  some 
too  long,  and  a  couple  of  millimetres'  divergency  from  ideal  ac- 
curacy will  often  make  a  very  much  greater  proportionate  difference 
in  an  index  where  the  numbers  combined  are  small.  If  the  observer 
would  have  even  his  own  measurements  of  equal  value  on  different 
occasions,  he  must  take  care  to  reproduce  the  conditions  exactly, 
not  only  as  regards  his  subjects,  but  also  as  regards  himself ;  and 
above  all,  he  must  not  attempt  to  measure  more  than  a  very  few 
individuals  at  a  sitting,  for  no  other  kind  of  purely  mechanical 
investigation  is  more  fatiguing  to  the  mind  and  body,  and  a  tired 
man  is  not  in  a  condition  to  measure  accurately. 

By  the  combination  of  anthropometry  with  history  and  tradition 
it  is  possible  to  arrive  at  legitimate  conclusions  regarding  the 
ethnology  of  the  Faroes.  The  people,  descended  in  the  main  from 
ancestors  whose  blood  was  somewhat  mixed,  but  chiefly  Norse, 
have  remained  more  or  less  isolated  for  about  a  thousand  years, 
except  for  casual  immigration  of  persons  and  parties,  who  were 
probably  *  Celtic'  or  Iberian,  and  who,  it  is  safe  to  say,  came 
either  from  Scotland,  from  Ireland,  or  from  the  intermediate  isles. 
This  casual  admixture  has  taken  place  more  frequently  or  in 
greater  proportion,  or  the  immigrants  may  have  been  more  pre- 
potent, in  the  most  southerly  island  of  the  group.  In-breeding  may 
possibly  have  dwarfed  the  stature  of  the  race,  but  details  regarding 
imbecility  and  deafness  are  so  indefinite  that  they  may  be  well 
ignored,  and  after  many  weeks  spent  on  diflferent  occasions  in 


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24  Proceedings  of  Royod  Society  of  JSdinburgh,  [sbss. 

different  Faroe  villages,  I  see  no  reason  to  believe  that  the  race  is 
physically  or  mentally  degenerate.  A  point  which  needs  investi- 
gation even  more  urgently  than  the  ethnology  of  the  Faroes  is  the 
development  of  the  Icelandic  race,  which  has  been  more  strictly 
isolated  than  the  Faroemen,  and  in  which  some  interesting  peculi- 
arities, I  believe  myself,  might  be  discovered,  even  with  so  rough  a 
method  of  examination  as  a  large  series  of  measurements  of  living 
individuals. 

It  only  remains  for  me  to  express  my  thanks  to  Sir  William 
Turner  for  his  encoxiragement  in  the  study  of  physical  anthro- 
pology, and  to  Professor  D.  J.  Cunningham,  at  whose  suggestion 
the  investigations  embodied  above  were  undertaken. 


BIBLIOGRAPHY. 


(1)  F.  J0RGEN8EN,  Anthvopologiske  Unders^gelser  fra  Fseroeme 
{Anthropologia  Fxroica) :  A/handling  for  DoMorgraden  i  Medecin 
ved  Kj^penliavns  Uniuersitet     Copenhagen,  1902. 

(2)  A.  C.  Haddon,  Ths  Study  of  Man,     London,  1898. 

(3)  N.  Annandale,  Blacktcood^s  Magazine^  No.  dccccxciv.,  1898, 
pp.  244-260. 

(4;  John  Beddoe,  The  Races  of  Britain.     Bristol,  1885. 

(5)  G.  Landt,  a  Description  of  tlie  Feroe  Islands,   London^  1810. 

(6)  F.  York  Powell,  Tlie  Tale  of  Thrond  of  Gate.    London,  1896. 

(7)  Robert  Chambers,  Tracings  of  Iceland  and  the  Faroe 
Islands,     Edinburgh,  1856. 

(8)  Jacob  Jacobsbn,  Fser^sk  Anthologi  (U.  V.  Hammershaimb's). 
Copenhagen,  1891. 

(9)  Stanley  Lane-Poole,  TheBarhary  Corsairs,   London,  1890. 

(10)  Bj6rn  J6N880N  OP  ScardsA,  TyrJgarans  Saga;  (1643). 
Reylgavik.  Hallvab^^ur  Hjengsson  and  HRiBRSKUR  Hrolfsson, 
Litil  Saga  umm  herlaup  Tyrhjans  a  tslandi  arid^  1627,  Reyk- 
javik, 1852. 

(11)  George  Steuart  Mackenzie,  Travels  in  tJie  Island  of  Ice- 
land during  the  Summer  of  the  year  MDGCCX,    Edinburgh,  1811. 

(12)  N.  Annandale,  Man,  1903,  art.  No.  79,  pp.  137,  138. 


{Issued  separate fy  Xoveinber  30,  1908.) 


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1908-4.]  Mr  E.  Maclagan-Wedderbum  on  Seiches  in  Loch  Ness.  25 


Seiches  observed  in  Looh  Ness.    By  Mr  E.  Maolagan- 
Wedderbum,      Communicated  by  Professor  Chrtstal. 

(Read  November  16,  1908.     MS.  received  December  22,  1908.) 

{Absirad.) 

The  first  observations  on  seiches  in  Scotland  were  made  last 
summer  by  members  of  the  Lake  Survey,  the  differences  in  level 
having  been  measured  by  a  foot-rule.  A  Sarasin  limnograph  was 
procured  by  the  Survey  and  was  set  up  at  Fort  Augustus  on  Loch 
Ness  in  June  of  this  year,  and  has  been  recording  since  then,  with 
only  a  few  stoppages.  The  biggest  seiche  so  far  recorded  had  an 
amplitude  of  about  9  cm.  The  boat-house  of  St  Benedict's  Abbey, 
kindly  put  at  Sir  John  Murray's  disposal  by  the  Lord  Abbot,  gave 
shelter  to  the  instrument  both  from  wind  and  waves. 

Three  types  of  seiches  are  common  on  Loch  Ness,  with  periods 
of  approximately  31*5,  15*3,  and  8*8  minutes.  The  first  of  these 
is  probably  the  uninodal  seiche.  It  seldom  occurs  pure,  or  of  any 
considerable  magnitude.  This  may  be  due  to  the  influence  of  Loch 
Dochfour,  which  is  a  continuation  of  Loch  Ness  at  the  north-east 
end.  The  two  lochs  are  connected  by  a  narrow  channel  about  20  ft. 
deep,  through  which  a  strong  current  sometimes  flows,  and  for  this 
reason,  in  calculating  the  theoretical  period  of  the  seiche,  it  was 
thought  proper  to  omit  Ix)ch  Dochfour. 

The  period  was  calculated  in  two  ways.     First,  by  the  formula 

t^2ldl  ^bjag^  where  b  is  the  breadth  and  a  the  area  of  a  cross 

section  at  any  particular  point.  This  is  the  formula  obtained  by 
assuming  the  hypothesis  of  parallel  sections.  The  value  obtained 
was  42  minutes,  which  is  considerably  in  the  excess  of  the  observed 

value.    The  period  was  then  calculated  by  the  formula  t  —  2\  dl/^Jgh, 

and  the  value  obtained  for  t  was  30*9  minutes,  which  agrees  very 
closely  with  the  observed  value.  This  method  assumes  that  the 
period  of  the  seiche  would  be  the  same  if  the  shores  of  the  loch 
rose  perpendicularly  instead  of  obliquely. 


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26  Pi'oceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh,  [i 

The  binodal  seiche,  whose  period  is  about  15*3  minutes,  is- 
usually  very  well  marked.  It  is  the  commonest  type,  and  lasts 
longer  than  the  uninodal  seiche.  The  node  is  probably  some- 
where in  the  neighbourhood  of  Inverfarigaig,  but  has  not  yet  been 
accurately  determined.  It  is  also  interesting  because  its  period  is^ 
less  than  half  the  period  of  the  uninodal  seiche,  although,  accord- 
ing to  Du  Boys,  it  ought  always  to  be  greater  than  half ;  and  in 
most  lochs  it  is  so,  the  most  notable  exception  being  Lake  Geneva. 
The  basin  of  Loch  Ness  is  so  regular  that  it  is  difficult  to  explain 
it,  as  waa  attempted  in  the  case  of  Lake  Geneva,  by  assuming  an 
oscillation  of  part  of  the  loch. 

The  polynodal  seiche,  whose  period  is  8*8  minutes,  is  always  of 
small  amplitude,  but  sometimes  very  regular.  There  are  also* 
oscillations  of  shorter  period,  but  they  do  not  occur  regularly 
enough  to  allow  of  their  measurement  with  any  degree  of  accuracy. 
On  one  or  two  occasions  there  were  embroideries  on  the  curve,, 
which  may  have  been  due  to  transverse  seiches.  Owing  to  the 
narrowness  of  the  loch,  the  period  of  such  a  seiche  would  only  b© 
about  1  minute.  These  embroideries  may  be  due  to  a  variety  of 
causes,  such  as  the  wash  of  steamers,  the  opening  of  the  lock  gates 
in  the  canal,  etc.  It  will  only  be  possible  to  determine  whether 
they  are  vibrations  or  transverse  seiches  by  simultaneous  observa- 
tions at  the  two  sides  of  the  loch. 

The  range  of  atmospheric  conditions  at  Fort  Augustus  included 
thunderstorms  and  earthquakes,  but  these  had  no  very  marked 
influence  on  the  loch.  It  seems  probable  that  the  cause  of  seiches 
is  sudden  local  variations  of  atmospheric  pressure ;  and  this  view- 
is  supported  by  the  records  of  a  barograph  at  Fort  Augustus.  The 
polynodal  seiches,  and  perhaps  the  uninodal  and  binodal  seiches 
also,  may  be  started  by  sudden  gusts  of  wind.  The  wind  blows 
down  the  various  glens  in  strong,  almost  vertical  gusts,  and  this 
may  be  sufficient  to  start  the  oscillation. 

All  the  speculations,  however,  regarding  the  causes  of  seiches 
can  only  be  satisfactorily  tested  by  quantitative  measurements  of 
the  forces  at  work,  and  it  is  hoped  that  something  will  be  done  in 
this  direction  in  the  summer  of  1904. 

{Issued  separately  January  16,  190^.) 


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1908-4.]  Mr  Calderwood  on  Btdl  Trout  of  Tay  and  Tweed,    27 


The  Bull  Trout  of  the  Tay  and  of  Tweed. 
By  W.  L.  Calderwood.     (With  a  Plate.) 

The  particular  bull  trout  with  which  I  desire  to  deal  in  this  paper 
are  the  important  migratory  fishes  which  are  commonly  referred  to 
by  this  name  in  Scotland.  I  make  no  mention  of  more  or  lesa 
monstrous  examples  of  the  common  brown  trout,  or  even  of  those 
examples  of  S,  fario  which  have  assumed  a  semi-migratory  habit,, 
and  have  become  much  modified  by  reason  of  their  life  in  the 
estuaries  of  our  larger  rivers. 

Amongst  the  true  migratory  salmonidce  are  two  fishes  which  I 
hope  to  show  are  distinct  from  one  another,  but  concerning  which 
considerable  confusion  seems  at  present  to  exist,  because  they  are 
both  called  bull  trout  This  somewhat  ambiguous  term  *  bull  trout  ^ 
is  a  familiar  one  throughout  Scotland,  but  the  two  forms  to  which 
I  here  refer  are  well  represented,  the  one  in  the  Tay  and  the  other 
in  the  Tweed,  and  it  is  convenient,  therefore,  to  mention  these  twa 
rivers  specially,  since  they  are,  as  it  were,  the  homes  of  the  separate 
forms.  Pamell,  in  his  essay  on  the  Fishes  of  the  Firth  of  Forth, 
describes  and  figures  eight  bull  trout,  to  some  of  which  he  gives- 
the  name  of  'salmon  bull  trout.'  These  fishes  are  placed  aa 
varieties  of  the  species  S,  eriox^  and  are,  curiously  enough,  included 
in  part  by  Giinther  under  his  species  S,  trvMa  (Brii,  Mue.  Gat.y 
vol.  vi.  p.  26). 

During  last  summer  I  had  the  opportunity  of  examining  many 
Tay  bull  trout,  and  I  am  satisfied  that  this  fish  is  the  same  as  the 
•salmon  bull  trout'  of  Pamell;  and  further,  that  it  cannot  be 
referred  either  to  S.  eriox  or  to  S,  trutta. 

The  bull  trout  of  the  Tay  grows  to  a  size  beyond  that  ever 
attained  by  any  variety  of  sea  trout.  Examples  occur  from  5  lbs. 
to  60  lbs.  I  have  not  myself  seen  any  example  approaching  60  lbs., 
and  such  are  naturally  extremely  rare,  but  records  in  the  possession 
of  the  Secretary  of  the  Tay  Salmon  Fisheries  Co.  are  suflicient  to 
show  that  the  fish  attains  as  great  weights  as  the  salmon.  During 
the  past  season  two  or  three  occurred  well  over  40  lbs.,  the  heaviest 


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28  Proceedings  of  Boyal  Society  of  Edinburgh,         [suss. 

«almon  being  51  lbs.  On  6th  July  of  this  year  (1903)  seven  bull 
trout  were  weighed  together,  and  turned  the  scale  at  214  lbs., 
showing  the  high  average  of  30  lbs.  A  small  run  of  fish  between 
5  lbs.  and  8  lbs.  appeared  with  the  grilse  in  July ;  and  I  may  remark 
in  passing  that  the  Tay  grilse  are  heavy  as  compared  with  the 
grilse  of  other  rivers. 

In  general  outline  this  so-called  bull  trout  is  in  no  way  different 
from  the  shapely  Tay  salmon,  and  the  appearance  of  the  head, 
the  outline  of  the  gill  cover,  and  shape  of  the  preoperculum  are 
identical  This  is  seen  in  PI.  fig.  1.  The  caudal  fin  also  and  the 
<»audal  peduncle  are  alike  in  like  sizes  of  fish.  The  opportunity 
given  me  of  viewing  salmon  interspersed  with  bull  trout  laid  out 
in  rows  upon  the  sloping  cement  floor  of  the  Tay  Fisheries  Co. 
Fish  House  at  Perth  enabled  one  not  only  to  compare  bull  trout 
and  salmon,  but  to  note  the  variations  which  occur  in  both ;  and 
those  variations  I  found  to  be  in  no  way  dissimilar. 

The  distinguishing  feature  of  the  bull  trout  is  primarily  one  of 
mirface  marking.  The  dorsum  is  more  or  less  thickly  speckled 
with  small  black  spots,  and  these  are  also  to  a  varying  extent 
displayed  on  the  side,  and  more  especially  on  the  *  shoulder*  of 
the  fish  below  the  lateral  line.  A  well-marked  bull  trout  has 
the  spots  below  the  lateral  line  continued  backwards  as  far  as  the 
level  of  the  dorsal  fin.  But  when  one  examines  a  large  number 
of  fish,  examples  are  readily  found  with  few  spots ;  and  one  notices 
that  a  diminishing  gradation  blends  ultimately  into  an  appearance 
which  in  no  way  differs  from  that  seen  in  fish  which  are  unquestion- 
ably pure  salmon. 

A  peculiar  characteristic  of  these  fish,  however,  is  the  presence 
of  'maggots'  (Irente(>po^a  salmoneay  Linn.)  on  the  gills,  the  parasite 
which  commonly  infests  the  gills  of  salmon  kelts  in  fresh  water. 
These  bull  trout  coming  from  the  sea  into  the  river,  and  with  tide 
lice  (Lemeopthirus)  upon  them  to  prove  their  comparative  clean- 
ness, are  nevertheless  usually  infested  by  gill  maggots. 

I  know  of  no  other  special  features  other  than  the  two  just 
mentioned  whereby  this  so-called  bull  trout  may  be  distinguished 
from  salmon,  and  in  my  opinion  no  real  structural  difference 
•exists. 

A  detailed  examination  reveals  nothing  in  the  dentition,  fin-ray 


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1903-4.]  Mr  Calderwood  on  Bull  Tr&id  ofTay  and  Tweed,    2& 

formulae,  number  of  scales,  from  adipose  fin  to  lateral  line,  or  in  the 
relative  proportions  of  the  head,  which  can  be  regarded  as  of  any 
specific  importance. 

By  fishermen  these  bull  trout  are  judged  by  their  spotted  or 
speckled  appearance  and  by  the  presence  of  maggots  on  the  gills. 
In  cases  where  the  spots  are  so  few  as  to  render  decision  doubtful, 
the  gills  are  examined,  when,  if  maggots  are  present,  the  fish  i& 
regarded  as  a  bull  trout.  For  the  table,  the  fish  is  considered  aa 
of  inferior  quality  to  the  salmon,  and  it  does  not  realise  quite  as 
high  a  price  in  the  market. 

I  subjoin  particulars  of  eleven  of  these  fish  examined  at  Perth 
on  15  th  August  last,  two  of  the  examples  being  from  Loch  Kess^ 
the  others  from  the  Tay.  Length  measurements  are  in  each  case 
made  on  the  fiat,  without  taking  into  account  the  round  surface 
of  the  fish.  Scales  are  counted  from  posterior  margin  of  adipose 
fin  obliquely  forwards  and  downwards  to  lateral  line. 


No.  1.  Female. 
Length  32'x7J''  (81-7xl8-4   cm.); 

weight  14i  lbs. 
Length  of  head  15  cm. 
Post,  margin  of  gill  cover  to  back  of 

eye  8*5  cm. 
Teeth  only  on  head  of  vomer. 
Tail  straight;    caadal  peduncle  5*8 

cm. 
Spots  below  lat  line. 
Scales  12. 

Fin  rays,  D  13,  P  18. 
Maggots  on  gills. 

No.  2. 
Length  394" x 84"  (101x217  cm.); 

weight  26^  lbs. 
Length  of  head  20  cm. 
Eye  to  post   margin  of  gill   cover 

11  cm. 
Teeth  absent  fh)m  vomer. 
Tail  straight;    caadal  peduncle  7*2 

cm. 
Spots,  none  below  lat   line   or   on 

head. 
Scales  12. 

Fin  rays,  D  18,  P  13. 
Maggots  on  gills. 


No.  8.  Female. 
Length  424* x 9"   (107*8x23    cm.); 

weight  33  lbs. 
Length  of  head  21  *3  cm. 
Eye  to  post  of  gill  cover  12-3  cm. 
Teeth  absent  from  vomer. 
Tail  straight ;  caudal  ped.  8  cm. 
Spots  numerous  below  lat  line  and 

on  head. 
Scales  12. 

Fin  rays,  D  14,  P  12,  A  12,  V  8. 
Maggots  on  gills. 

A  well-marked  example. 

No.  4.  Female  (Tay). 
Length  SOj^xei"  (78-6  x  16-9  cm.)  ; 

weight  Hi  lbs. 
Length  of  head  14  cm. 
Eye  to  post,  of  gill  cover  8  cm. 
Teeth  on  head  and  one  on  shaft  of 

vomer. 
Tail  concave  ;  caudal  ped.  5*2  cm. 
Spots,  only  two  on  shoulder,  below 

lat  line. 
Scales  11. 

Fin  rays,  D  14,  P  12,  V  9. 
Maggots  numerous  on  gills. 

A  shapely,  salmon-like  example. 


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30 


Proceedings  of  Boyal  Society  of  Edinhurgh.  [sess. 


No.  6.  Female  (Tay). 
Length    81" x 7"   (79-2 x  17*8    cm.); 

weight  18  lbs. 
Length  of  head  14*3. 
Eye  to  post  of  gill  cover  8*2  cm. 
Teeth  absent  from  vomer. 
Tail  straight ;  caudal  ped.  5*6  cm. 
•Spots  below   lat.    line    to   level   of 

dorsal  fin. 
.Scales  12. 

Fin  rays,  D  12,  V  9. 
^laggots,  very  few. 

No.  6.  Female  (Tay). 
Length  28J''x6i''   (73-8x16    cm.); 

weight  10|  lbs. 
Length  of  head  13*8  cm. 
Eye  to  post,  of  gill  cover  7*8  cm. 
Teeth  on  head  of  vomer. 
Tail  concave  ;  caudal  ped.  5*2  cm. 
^pots  on  shoulder  below  lat.  line. 
iScales  12. 

Fin  rays,  D.  13,  V  9,  P  12. 
Maggots  numerous. 

This  example  had  a  marked 
salmon  appearance. 

No.  7.  Female  (Tay). 
Length    82* x 7"   (81*7x17*8    cm.); 

weight  12i  lbs. 
Length  of  head  15  cm. 
Eye  to  post,  of  gill  cover  8*8  cm. 
One  tooth  on  head  of  vomer. 
Tail  straight ;  caudal  ped.  5*8  cm. 
■Spots  below  lat  line  to  level  of  post. 

margin  of  dorsal  fin. 
i^cales  12. 

Fin  rays,  D  18,  P  12,  V  9,  A  10. 
Maggots,  only  two  present. 

No.  8.  Female  (Tay). 
Length  861" x 74"  (93*2 x  19-2  cm.); 

weight  18i  lbs. 
Length  of  head  17  7  cm. 
Eye  to  post  of  gill  cover  10  cm. 
One  tooth  on  head  of  vomer. 


Spots,  a  small    patch    on    shoulder 

only. 
Scales  11. 

Fin  rays,  D  13,  P  12,  V  9. 
Maggots  not  numerous. 

No.  9.  Female  (from  Loch  Ness). 
Length    341* x 8"    (88x20*8    cm.); 

weight  194  lbs. 
Length  of  head  17  cm. 
Eye  to  post  of  gill  cover  10  cm. 
Teeth  absent  from  vomer. 
Tail  straight 
Scales  12. 

Fin  rays,  D  14,  V  9. 
Spots  all  along  dorsum  and  also  below 

lat  line  to  level  of  front  of  dorsal 

fin. 
Maggot,  only  one  present. 

No.  10.  Female  (from  Loch  Ness). 
Length   31" x 7"   (79*2x17*8    cm.); 

weight  124  lbs. 
Length  of  head  15  cm. 
Eye  to  post,  of  gill  cover  8*5  cm. 
Tail  straight ;  caudal  peduncle  5*8. 
Scales,  11  on  right  side,  10  on  left, 

distinct 
Fin  rays,  D  18,  P  11,  V  9. 
Spots  below  lat.  line  to  level  of  dorsal 

fin. 
Maggots  absent 

No.  11  Female  (Tay). 

Length   844" x 78"   (88x19*7    cm.); 

weight  17J  lbs. 
Length  of  head  17  cm. 
Eye  to  post,  of  gill  cover  9*3  cm. 
Teeth  absent  from  vomer. 
Scales  12. 

Fin  rays  D  14,  V  9. 
Spots,  very  few  below  lat.  line  (}). 
Maggots  numerous. 

Had   appearance    of  ill- 
conditioned  salmon. 


In  this  series  some  fish  were  selected  as  having  specially  notice- 
•able  bull  trout  markings,  others  were  less  distinctly  marked, 
while  No.  6,  when  selected  from  amongst  the  other  fish,  gave 
rise  to  much  discussion  amongst  the  men  present  as  to  whether  it 


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3903-4.]  Mr  Calderwood  07i  Bull  Trout  of  Tay  arid  Tweed.    31 

'yras  a  bull  trout  or  salmon.  It  is  the  smallest  fish  of  the  series, 
being  only  281"  long  and  lOf  lbs.  in  weight,  but  it  is  interesting  to 
■compare  it  with  the  distinct  bull  trout  nearest  it  in  size,  viz.,  No. 
10,  which  is  31"  long  and  12^  lbs.  in  weight — a  Loch  Ness  fish. 


Head. 

TaUfin. 

Scales. 

Fin  fonnulee. 

offish. 

No.    6 

13-3 

concave 

12 

D13P12V9. 

5§  times 

10 

15-0 

straight 

11/10 

D18P11V9. 

5  times 

No.  6  had  a  few  spots  on  the  shoulder  below  the  lateral  line 
^md  numerous  maggots  in  the  gills. 

No.  10  had  spots  along  the  side  to  a  level  of  the  posterior 
margin  of  dorsal  fin,  but  had  no  maggots. 

The  total  absence  of  maggots  is,  I  believe,  rare. 

That  the  bull  trout  of  the  Ness  is  quite  similar  to  the  Tay 
bull  trout  is  well  seen  by  comparing  Nos.  9  and  1 1. 


Length. 

Depth. 

Weight. 

Head. 

Scales.     Fins. 

u    9 

34^ 

8" 

m 

17  cm. 

12       D14V9. 

11 

344" 

rr 

m 

17  cm. 

12       D14V9. 

The  measurements  of  the  head  in  each  case  show  that,  in  the 
series,  the  length  of  the  head  is  contained  in  the  length  of  the 
fiah  from  5  times  to  5^^  times,  all  measurements  being  of  females. 
In  the  same  way,  the  vertical  measurement  of  the  caudal  peduncle 
is  contained  in  the  length  of  the  fish  from  13  J  to  fully  15  times. 

The  belief  that  these  Tay  bull  trout  are  in  reality  salmon 
receives  what  I  think  may  almost  be  considered  practical  confir- 
mation from  certain  recaptures  of  marked  salmon  which  have 
recently  been  reported  to  me.  Six  Tay  fish  have  been  recaptured 
.as  bull  trout  which,  when  marked,  were  not  noticed  to  show  any 
trace  of  bull  trout  characteristics,  but  to  be  ordinary  salmon. 

i  marked  14  lbs.  :  86":  kelt:   9  :  17th  Jan.  1902:  at  Battleby. 
recaptured  33  lbs. :  48"  :  clean  :  27th  July  1903  :  **  Skin  the  Goat " 
station,  near  Newburgh. 

(This  fish  may  have  ascended,  spawned,  and  descended  in 
the  interval) 

N     8311  >  ^^^^'  •  32":  kelt:    9  :  23rd  Jan.  1902:  EastHaugh,  r.  Tummel. 
J 17  lbs. :  38" :  clean :  16th  Apr.  1903  :  Flookie  station,  in  tidal  water. 

I  6  lbs. :  24"  :  kelt :   6  :  10th  Feb.  1903  :  East  Haugh,  r.  Tummel. 
:No.  8348  ]  14}  lbs.  :  33i" :  clean :  20th  Aug.  1903  :  Pyeroad  station,  in  tidal 
(     water. 


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32  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh,         [i 

(  24i  lbs.  :  37i'' :  clean :   6  :  14th  Nov.  1902  :  Weetshot,  Linn  of 
No.  8882  <     Campaie. 

r  22i  lbs. :  40" :  clean :  13th  Feb.  190S :  Flookie,  in  tidal  water. 

!7i  lbs.  :  27" :  unspawned  grilse :   9  :  22nd  Nov.  1902 :  Almond- 
mouth. 
12  lbs. :  31i"  :  dean :  13th  Aug.  1903  :  Needle  station. 

N     9402  /  *  1^  •  26" :  grilse  kelt :  9  :  6th  Feb.  1903  :  Logierait,  Upper  Tay. 
\  lOi  lbs. :  30 :  clean  :  3l8t  July  1908 :  Flookie  station. 

The  intervals  of  time  are,  in  order,  556  days,  447  days,  191 
days,  91  days,  295,  and  176  days.  In  other  words,  we  have  one 
recapture  after  18  months,  and,  at  the  other  extreme,  a  recapture 
after  only  3  months,  but  this  latter  is  peculiar,  since  the  fish  was 
clean  run  when  marked.  It  is  just  possible  that  this  fish,  No. 
8882,  may  have  been  descending  (without  having  spawned)  when 
recaptured.     The  loss  of  weight  is  significant. 

I  have  already  noticed  that  the  gill  maggots  are  commonly 
found  on  kelts.  Lemeopoda  aalmonea  is  usually  believed  to  be 
exclusively  a  fresh-water  parasite.  My  attention  was  first  called 
to  the  fact  that  this  may  not  be  the  case  in  the  results  obtained 
by  the  marking  of  salmon  which  has  been  conducted  by  the 
Fishery  Board  for  Scotland  during  recent  years.  A  grilse  kelt^ 
marked  in  the  Deveron  on  11th  March  1901  by  a  silver  label 
numbered  6508,  was  recaptured  on  11th  July  of  the  same  year, 
at  Cove,  just  south  of  Aberdeen.  To  have  travelled  in  four 
months  round  the  coast,  passing,  as  it  had  done,  the  mouths  of  the 
rivers  Ugie,  Ythan,  Don,  and  Dee,  is  sufficient  to  show  that  the 
fish  must  have  been  some  time  in  salt  water,  and  between  marking 
and  recapture  it  had  gained  2f  lbs.  in  weight,  yet  quite  a  number 
of  maggots  were  still  attached  to  the  gills  when  I  received  the 
fish.  This  induced  a  more  careful  examination  of  the  gills  of  fish 
ascending  rivers  from  the  sea,  and  during  the  continuance  of 
salmon  marking,  Mr  H.  "W.  Johnston,  who  kindly  associates  himself 
with  me  in  all  the  Tay  markings,  has  noted,  as  I  also  have  noted, 
many  autumn  fish  with  a  few  maggots  in  their  gills — indeed,  late- 
running  fish  are  very  commonly  found  with  maggots.  In  salmon 
and  grilse  proper  the  maggots  are  never  so  numerous  as  in  *  bull 
trout,'  or  fish  with  certain  bull  trout  markings,  but  I  regard  it 
as  most  significant  that  fish  fresh  from  the  tide- way  in  the  lower 
Tay  should  be  so  found.     Our  marking  experiments  have  shown 


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1903-4.]  Mr  Calderwood  on  Bull  Trout  of  Tay  and  Tweed,    33 

that  in  our  large  rivers  kelts  frequently  remain  for  surprisingly 
long  periods  after  spawning.  During  a  prolonged  stay  in  fresh 
water  the  maggots  remain  fixed  to  the  gills,  and  in  some  cases 
the  fish  do  not  regain  their  silvery  appearance  before  entering  the 
sea.  The  suggestion  which  I  would  venture  upon  is,  that  if  such 
fish  remain  only  a  comparatively  short  time  in  the  sea,  or,  it  may 
be,  remain  a  considerable  time  in  the  vicinity  of  the  mouth  of  a 
large  river  like  the  Tay,  the  maggots  will  still  be  found  attached 
to  the  gills  on  their  return.  Further,  T  think  it  very  probable 
that  the  peculiar  spotted  appearance  may  arise  under  similar  con- 
ditions ;  that  the  fish  having,  as  it  were,  failed  to  visit  good  feeding 
grounds,  and  being,  it  may  be,  less  fully  nourished  than  the 
average  salmon,  exhibits  to  a  varying  degree  this  peculiar  speckled 
appearance. 

Since  examining  these  fish,  I  find  that  in  an  addendum  to 
Giinther's  Brit  Mus.  Catalogue,  vol  vi.,  reference  is  made  to  his 
seeing  other  specimens  of  bull  trout  taken  from  the  Beauly.  He 
states  that  in  Lord  Lovat's  opinion  some  of  those  Beauly  fish  arc 
hybrids  between  the  salmon  and  the  sea  trout,  "  yet,**  he  adds,  "  the 
relative  size  of  the  scales  on  the  tail  is  in  all  these  bull  trout  the  same 
as  in  the  salmon.  Captain  H.  Fraser  believes  that  other  specimens 
of  '  bull  trout '  are  true  salmon,  which,  having  gone  down  to  the  sea 
as  kelts,  return  to  fresh  water  before  having  attained  to  the  con- 
dition of  well-mended  fish.  Thus,  as  regards  the  river  Beauly  at 
least,  fishes  named  ^bull  trout'  do  not  constitute  a  distinct 
species."  This  was  written  in  1866,  and  I  gather  from  it  that 
Dr  Gtinther  would  afterwards  have  probably  altered  the  position 
which  he  assigns  to  *  the  salmon  bull  trout  of  Pamell '  taken  from 
the  Forth. 

Captain  H.  Fraser's  surmise  is,  I  think,  a  correct  one,  applied  not 
merely  to  Beauly  fish  but  also  to  the  so-called  bull  trout  fomid 
in  the  Forth,  Tay,  Spey,  Ness,  and  other  rivers. 

Tweed  Fish. 

Turning  now  to  the  bull  trout  of  the  Tweed  district,  we  find 
at  once  a  very  different  fish,  and  in  this  case  a  trout  in  reality. 
We  have  seen  that  Pamell  classed  his  salmon  bull  trout  under 
S,  erioxy  and  I  have  ventured  to  assert  that  S,  solar  would  have 

PROC.  ROY.  SOC.  EDIN. — VOL.  XXV.  3 


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34  Proceedings  of  JRoycU  Society  of  JEdiriburgh.         [sbss. 

been  a  more  appropriate  title.  This  Tweed  bull  trout,  otherwise 
known  as  the  grey  trout  or  round  tail,  is  the  8,  erioz,  as 
described  by  Yarrell,  who,  better  I  think  than  any  other  writer, 
seems  to  have  recognised  the  rather  distinct  character  of  the  fish. 
Giinther  refers  to  Yarrell's  S.  eriox  under  S,  cambricus,  the  sewen, 
or  English  and  Irish  equivalent  of  our  Scottish  sea  trout;  and 
Day  places  the  fish  in  the  same  category,  with  this  difference,  that 
he  does  not  consider  cambrieus  as  specifically  distinct  from 
trutta. 

Without  entering  at  length  into  the  wide  question  of  the 
genealogy  of  migratory  and  non-migratory  trout,  it  is  advisable  to 
recollect  both  the  apparently  great  differences  which  exist  between 
what  I  prefer  to  call  local  races  of  trout,  and  the  infinite  gradations 
which  certainly  exist  to  join  such  local  races  with  one  another  and 
with  the  typical  sea  trout  or  the  typical  brown  trout.  The  result 
of  transporting  brown  trout  eggs  to  New  Zealand  has  shown  how 
rapidly  change  of  environment  will  produce  a  fish  which  our 
British  Museum  authorities  diagnose  as  typical  sea  trout 
{S.  trutta). 

The  late  Sir  James  Maitland  showed  by  different  methods  of 
feeding  how  Loch  Leven  trout  could  be  made  to  resemble  either 
S,  fario  or  S,  trutta ;  the  beautifully  silvery  trout  (fario)  of  some 
of  our  West  Highland  lochs  inaccessible  to  ascending  fish;  the 
characteristics  of  estuary  trout,  of  the  Orkney  trout,  or,  let  us  say, 
of  the  creature  usually  described  as  Salmo  ferox,  are  enough  to 
show  that  either  we  must  have  a  great  many  species,  in  accordance 
with  the  view  adopted  by  Giinther,  or,  laying  stress  on  the  inter- 
mediate gradations,  we  must  regard  all  trout  as  belonging  to  one 
species,  and  that  a  plastic,  and  therefore  perhaps  a  comparatively 
recent  species.  The  name  S,  eriox  is  as  old  as  the  thirteentli 
century.  In  1824  Sir  Humphrey  Davy  classed  all  our  varieties 
under  the  name  S.  eriox ;  but  it  being  maintained  in  1878  that  the 
fish  Inferred  to  by  Linnseus  was  in  reality  the  young  of  8.  eaJLar, 
the  term  eriox^  as  applied  to  trout,  was  discarded,  and  by  a  process 
of  gradual  disentanglement  from  amongst  the  many  specifically 
named  creatures  which  in  the  interval  had  been  described  by 
naturalists,  our  present  name  of  8,  trutta  has  been  brought  into 
common  use. 


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1908-4.]  Mr  Calderwood  on  BiUl  Trout  of  Tay  and  Tweed.    35 

If  we  examine  the  Tweed  bull  trout,  locally  termed  simply  sea 
trout,  as  it  comes  from  the  sea  at  Berwick,  its  appearance  is  very 
different  from  that  of  the  typical  S,  trutta.  It  is  not  a  very 
silvery  fish,  and  the  sides  are  profusely  spotted.  This  condition  is 
constant  in  Tweed  trout  of  all  sizes.  In  examining  a  large 
number  of  these  trout  at  Berwick  last  August,  I  was  fortunate 
enough  to  find  at  the  same  time  a  single  small  specimen  of  the 
typical  trutta,  a  fish  of  2|  lbs.  The  brilliant  sheen  of  this  fish  was 
very  distinct  from  the  rather  faded  grey  appearance  of  the  Tweed 
trout  of  the  same  size.  The  head  had  the  conical  appearance  so  char- 
acteristic of  S,  trutta — small  in  proportion  to  the  length  of  the  fish, 
with  the  maxillary  bones  well  sunk  into  the  surface,  so  as  to  give 
that  smoothness  and  compact  appearance  which  always  seems  to 
me  a  noticeable  feature  in  typical  examples  of  the  species.  The 
operculum  and  suboperculum  united  also  in  a  rounded  angle  only 
slightly  below  the  level  of  the  eye.  In  the  grey  trout  the  head 
is  flatter  on  the  sides  and  the  bones  of  the  mouth  more  prominent,* 
thus  giving  a  coarser  appearance  to  the  head.  The  giU  cover  is 
more  angular,  and  the  angle  is  at  a  lower  level,  being  in  a  line  with, 
and  sometimes  even  rather  below,  the  level  of  the  posterior 
extremity  of  the  maxilla.  On  this  account  the  lower  margins  of 
the  suboperculum  and  interoperculum  are  straighter  and  more 
horizontal  than  in  trutta  or  solar,  A  rather  marked  peculiarity  of 
the  preoperculum  struck  me,  which  does  not  appear  to  have  been 
referred  to  by  any  of  the  authors  whose  works  I  have  consulted. 
Instead  of  the  posterior  margin  being  gently  curved  or  slightly 
sinuous,  I  found  that  the  great  majority  of  these  fish  have  a 
crescent-shaped  notch  in  the  posterior  margin  of  this  bone.  In 
a  few  cases  two  less  distinct  notches  occurred,  while  in  one  or  two 
examples  three  less  deep  notches  were  present,  giving  to  the 
outline  of  this  bone  a  rippling  or  undulatory  appearance.  In 
only  one  case  out  of  the  twelve  or  thirteen  dozen  fishes  examined 
did  I  fijid  no  trace  of  indentations  on  the  preopercular  bones, 
while  in  one  other  case  I  found  the  bone  of  one  side  of  the  head 
with  the  usual  deep  single  notch,  while  the  bone  of  the  other  side 
of  the  head  was  unindented. 


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36  Proceedirifjfs  of  Boyal  Society  of  JBdinburgh,         [sbss. 

The  typical  gill  cover  I  would  represent  thus  : — 


Tweed  Trout.  8.  trutta. 

The  general  appearance  of  the  head  will  be  seen  in  the  photographs 
of  the  male  and  female  clean  run  fish  (figs.  2  and  3).  Belativelj 
to  the  total  length  of  the  fish,  I  find  that  the  head  is  contained 
from  4^  to  5}  times.  The  males  examined  in  August  varied  from 
4|  to  4f  times.  The  females  in  each  case  had  the  head  measure- 
ment 5f  times  in  the  length  of  the  fish  (measured  on  the  flat). 

The  caudal  fin  is  also  a  well-marked  feature.  At  a  comparatively 
early  age  this  tail  fin  becomes  truncate  or  rounded  at  its  outer 
margin.  In  so/or  and  in  irtUta  proper  this  never  happens,  so  far 
as  I  am  aware,  except  in  distinctly  large  fish.  In  the  Tweed  trout, 
however,  fish  between  6  and  7  pounds,  or  about  25  inches  long, 
show  this  rounded  tail — whence  the  name  '  round  tail/ 

The  female  specimen  photographed  is  7^  lbs.  and  26  inches  in 
length.  The  rounded  tail  is  well  seen.  An  example  weighing 
2^  lbs.,  and  which  was  18|  inches  long,  was  found  to  have  the 
caudal  fin  slightly  forked  when  fully  extended.  From  this 
slightly  forked  condition  in  young  fish,  the  tail  fin  becomes  first 
*  straight,'  then,  with  increased  size  and  age,  the  rounded  outer 
border  appears.  Finally,  in  fish  of  10  lbs.  and  upwards,  a  stunted 
aspect  is  frequently  noticeable,  the  tail  being  not  only  rounded,  but 
apparently  so  much  thickened  and  grown-over  by  the  caudal 
peduncle  as  to  have  the  free  portions  of  the  caudal  fin  rays  notice- 
ably short.     All  large  specimens  have  not  this  appearance,  but  it  is 


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1908-4.]  Mr  Calderwood  on  Bull  Trout  of  Tay  and  Tweed.   37 


common  amongst  laige  examples;  the  tail  is  thick,  short,  and 
•clumsy.  The  male  of  12^  lbs.  represented  in  the  photograph  has 
not  this  stunted  tail.  The  Tweed  trout  is  not  often  found  of 
greater  weight  than  15  or  16  lbs.  The  heaviest  fish  of  which  I 
-can  find  any  record  is  one  of  22  lbs.,  said  to  have  been  caught  at 
'ComhiU  boat-house  in  either  1841  or  1842  (William  Rochester, 
Tweed  Salmon  Reports,  1866,  p.  102). 

The  caudal  peduncle  is,  trout-like,  comparatively  broad,  varying,  1 
:find,  in  the  proportion  of  12  to  13^  times  the  total  length  of  the  fish. 
In  the  finer-tailed  salmon  this  measurement  gives  13|  to  15  times. 

The  fish  appears  to  retain  its  teeth  on  the  shaft  as  well  as  on 
the  head  of  the  vomer  to  a  more  advanced  age  than  is  the  case  in 
the  ordinary  sea  trout.  No  gill  maggots  were  present  in  the  fishes 
•examined. 

The  following  are  particulars  of  a  few  selected  specimens  : — 


No.  1. 
Length  Sl^xej"  (79*2 x  17-5  cm.); 

weight  13  lbs. 
Head  16-7  cm. 
Eye  to  post,  margin  of  gill    cover 

9*6  cm. 
Tomer  teeth  absent 
Scales  14/14. 

Tail  tmncate ;  caudal  pedmicle  6*6  cm. 
Fins,  D  12,  P  18,  A  10. 

No.  2. 
Length  SlJ^xS}"  (80*4  x  17  cm.); 

male  ;  weight  IS  lbs.  3  oz. 
Head  17*0  cm. 
Eye  to  gill  cover  9*6  cm. 
Soalm  12/18. 
Fms,  D  11,  P  18,  A  10. 
Tail  truncate;  caudal  peduncle  6*5 

cm. 

No.  8. 

Length    80^x6!     (76*5x17    cm.); 

male  ;  weight  12^  lbs. 
Head  16*0  cm. 
Eye  to  gill  cover  9*0  cm. 
Teeth,  two  on  head  of  vomer. 
Scales  13/18. 
Tail  markedly  truncate   (2*2  cm.) ; 

caudal  pedunde  6*2  cm. 
Rna,  D  12,  P  18,  A  11. 

The  specimen  photographed. 


No.  4. 
Length  26''x6i''  (66*8  x  14-6  cm.) 

female  ;  weight  7i  lbs. 
Head  11*7  cm. 

Eye  to  gill  cover  margin  7  '1  cm. 
Teeth,  two  on  shaft  and  two  on  head 

of  vomer. 
Scales  14/14. 

Tail  truncate;  caudal  peduncle  5*0  cm. 
Fins,   D  12  (very  distinct),   P    12, 

A  10,  V  9. 

Specimen  photographed. 

No.  6. 
Length     IS^xSi"     (46  x  10    cm.) ; 

weight  2^  lbs. 
Head  8*5  cm. 
Eye  to  gill  cover  5*0  cm. 
Teeth,  8  on  shaft  and  also  on  head  of 

vomer. 
Scales,  R  18,  L  11. 
Fins,  D  11,  P  12,  A.  10. 

No.  6. 
Length     IS'xSI     (46  x  9*2   cm.) ; 

weight  2  lbs.  10  oz. 
Head  8*6  cm. 
Eye  to  gill  cover  4*9. 
Teeth  all  along  shaft  of  vomer  and  on 

head. 
Tail  very  slightly  forked. 


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38  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edvtiburgh,         [sbss* 

I  am  indebted  to  Sir  Bichard  Waldie  Griffith,  Bart.,  Chairman 
of  the  Tweed  Commissioners,  for  specimens  in  spawning  condition 
taken  later  in  the  year. 

Though  the  Tweed  trout  cannot,  in  my  opinion,  be  regarded  a» 
a  species  distinct  from  trtdta^  it  is  perhaps  the  best-defined  variety 
of  migratory  trout  in  the  British  islands,  and  on  this  account- 
might  well,  I  think,  retain  the  distinguishing  name  of  erioXy  in 
contradistinction  to  the  variety  cambricue,  I  am  not  familiar  with 
the  trout  of  the  Coquet,  but  there  seems  no  reason  to  doubt  that 
the  Tweed  trout  and  the  Coquet  trout  are  of  the  same  local  race,, 
and  that  Berwickshire  and  Northumberland  form,  as  it  were,  the 
headquarters  of  the  variety.  Moreover,  the  history  of  the  local 
fisheries  seems  to  show  that  this  variety  haa  almost  entirely  super- 
seded the  sea  trout  proper.  A  point  upon  which  more  information 
is  required  is  the  relative  distribution  of  this  fish  at  the  mouths  of 
many  of  our  Highland  rivers,  as  referred  to  recently  by  Mr  Harvie- 
Brown  {Fishing  Gazette,  Oct.  10,  1903).  In  the  Tweed,  clean  bull 
trout  have  been  taken  in  January  during  netting  for  experimental 
purposes ;  and  although  the  greatest  runs  are  in  early  summer,  and 
especially  in  late  autumn,  a  certain  number  of  fish  are  entering  fresh 
water  all  the  year  round.  They  affect  certain  tributaries  more  than 
others,  but  push  up  to  high  spawning  grounds. 

In  particulars  of  Estimated  Annual  Produce  of  the  Fisheries  of 
the  River  Tweed  from  1808  to  1894,  it  appears  that,  whereas  at 
the  beginning  of  that  period  trout  were  less  numerous  than  either 
salmon  or  grilse,  in  process  of  time  trout  became  more  numerous, 
first  than  salmon,  and  afterwards  than  grilse. 

In  1808  the  figures  are  37,333  sahnon,  25,324  grilse,  and 
21,033  trout.  In  1844,  the  year  of  the  maximun  trout  crop,  there 
were  21,830  salmon,  88,003  grilse,  and  99,256  trout  In  1894  we 
have  a  marked  shrinkage,  viz. — 3271  salmon,  7877  grilse,  and 
18,535  trout. 

The  surprising  manner  in  which  this  trout  has  asserted  itself 
leads  us  more  clearly  to  understand  the  well-defined  character 
which  the  variety  ei'iox  now  exhibits. 


{Issued  separately  January  30,  1904.) 


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Pror,  Roy,  Sory.  of  Ed  in.]  [^y^jj    ^^-^y 


Mk  W.  L.  Caldkrwood. 


Fig.  1. 


Fig.  2. 


Fio.  3. 


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1903-4.]  Prof.  Schafer  on  Artificial  Bespiration  in  Man,        39 


The  Relative  Effloienoy  of  certain  Methods  of  per- 
forming Artificial  Beepiration  in  Man.  By  B.  A. 
Sch&fer,  F.R.S.     (With  a  Plate.) 

(Read  December  21,  1903.) 

Preliminary  observations  upon  this  subject,  which  were  made 
by  the  author  on  behalf  of  a  committee  of  the  Royal  Medical  and 
Chirurgical  Society  of  London,  are  published  in  a  report  presented 
by  the  committee  and  read  on  May  26th  of  this  year  before  that 
Society. 

The  methods  which  were  then  investigated  comprised  traction 
by  the  arms  with  alternate  relaxation,  with  and  without  chest 
compression ;  and  pressure  upon  the  chest  walls  alternating  with 
relaxation  from  removal  of  the  pressure;  the  subjects  of  the 
experiment  being  for  each  method  placed  successively  in  the 
supine,  the  prone  and  the  lateral  positions  (in  the  last-named  case 
one  arm  only  being  used  for  traction).  In  addition,  the  method  of 
MarshaU  Hall  was  similarly  tested.  In  this,  the  subject  is  alter- 
nately rolled  over  from  the  lateral  to  the  prone  position,  expiration 
being  assisted  by  pressure  upon  the  back  whenever  the  subject  is 
brought  to  the  prone  position. 

It  was  evident  from  those  experiments  that  it  is  possible  by 
nearly  all  the  methods  investigated  to  obtain  an  exchange  of  air 
per  respiration  as  great  as  that  of  the  tidal  air,  the  sole  exception 
being  the  methods  in  which  traction  alone,  without  alternating 
pressure  upon  the  lower  part  of  the  chest,  was  employed. 

The  number  of  experiments  which  we  were  able  to  make  at 
the  time  was,  however,  too  limited  to  enable  us  to  draw  any 
positive  conclusion  regarding  the  relative  value  of  the  several 
methods  of  performing  artificial  respiration  in  man  which  have  at 
various  times  been  recommended,  although  the  experiments  clearly 
show  the  very  important  part  which  alternating  pressure  upon  the 


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40  Proceedings  of  Eoyal  Society  of  Edinburgh.  [i 

lower  part  of  the  chest  plays  in  effecting  the  emptying  and  (by 
resiliency)  the  consequent  filling  of  the  lungs.  It  has  seemed 
desirable,  therefore,  to  supplement  them  by  further  experiments, 
having  for  their  object  the  exact  determination  of  the  amount  of 
air  exchanged,  not  only  per  respiratory  movement,  but  also  per 
unit  of  time,  a  factor  which  was  left  out  of  account  in 
the  earlier  experiments,  but  one,  nevertheless,  of  considerable 
importance. 

The  apparatus  which  was  used  in  the  experiments  referred  to 
in  the  report  consisted  of  a  counterpoised  bell-jar,  filled  with  air 
and  inverted  over  water ;  to  or  from  this  the  air  of  respiration 
was  conducted  from  the  mouthpiece  (or  mask)  by  a  curved  tube 
which  passed  through  the  water  and  opened  into  the  bell-jar. 
When,  therefore,  air  was  drawn  by  the  movement  of  inspiration 
from  the  bell-jar  this  sank  in  the  water,  and  when  air  was  forced 
into  it  by  the  movement  of  expiration  it  rose.  These  movements 
of  the  bell-jar  were  recorded  upon  a  slowly  moving  blackened 
cylinder,  and  the  diameter  and  corresponding  cubic  contents  of 
the  bell-jar  being  known,  the  amount  of  air  exchange  was  found  by 
measuring  the  ordinates  of  the  curves  described  on  the  cylinder. 
The  readings,  however,  must  be  looked  upon  as  only  approximate, 
because,  firstly,  the  bell-jar  which  was  used  was  only  approximately 
cylindrical ;  and  secondly,  because  the  counterpoised  bell-jar 
acquired,  with  the  somewhat  rapid  movements  imparted  to  it,  a 
swing  of  its  own  which  must  have  affected  the  record. 

In  order  to  obtain  more  accurate  measure  of  the  amount  of  air 
exchanged  in  respiration,  the  apparatus  which  was  employed  in 
these  earlier  experiments  has  been  discarded,  and  we  have  used  a 
carefully  constructed  graduated  gasometer  (spirometer),  counter- 
poised on  the  principle  devised  by  the  late  Dr  W.  Marcet  to  avoid 
the  error  which  arises  from  the  fact  that  the  more  a  gasometer  is 
raised  out  of  the  water  in  which  it  is  inverted,  the  greater  is  the 
pressure  exerted  upon  its  contents.  The  air  which  is  pumped 
out  of  the  chest  is  alone  measured,  but  it  is  clear  that  an  equal 
amount  must  afterwards  pass  in  to  take  its  place.  The  air  is 
respired  through  either  a  mask  or  mouthpiece.  In  practice  the 
latter  is  found  to  be  the  more  convenient,  as  less  liable  to 
accidental  leakage.     When  it  is  used,  the  nostrils  must  be  occluded 


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1908-4.]  Prof.  Schiifer  on  Artijicial  Bespinttion  in  Man,        41 

by  pinching  the  nose  either  by  the  fingers  or  by  a  spring  clip. 
The  tube  which  leads  from  the  mouthpiece  is  forked,  and  each 
ftirk  passes  to  a  water  valve,  one  for  admitting  air  to  the  mouth- 
piece, and  the  other  to  enable  the  air  Avhich  is  driven  out  of  the 
chest  to  pass  through  on  its  way  to  the  gasometer.  The  air  which 
is  pumped  into  the  gasometer  can  either  be  read  ofE  at  once  on  a 
scale  attached  to  the  instrument,  which  is  graduated  in  litres  and 
tenths  of  a  litre,  or  it  can  be  graphically  recorded  by  attaching  a 
pen  to  the  moving  (ascending)  gasometer,  allowing  this  both  to 


Fig.  8. — Silvester  method. 

register  the  extent  of  each  movement  and  also  the  number  of 
respiratory  movements  per  minute  upon  a  blackened  drum  revolving 
slowly  by  means  of  clockwork,  and  upon  which  a  time  tracing  is 
also  recorded.  The  tracings  so  obtained  can  be  afterwards  studied 
at  leisure. 

Fig.  1  is  a  photograph  showing  the  arrangement  of  the  apparatus. 

Fig.  2  shows  the  manner  in  which  any  respiratory  method  is 
investigated  by  it.  The  method  shown  in  the  photograph  is  that 
of  intermittent  pressure  upon  the  lower  ribs,  with  the  subject  in 
the  prone  position. 

Figs.  .^,  4  and  5  are  samples  of  tracings  obtained  by  this 
method.      The    'steps'   upon   eiicli    curve    mark    the   successive 


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42  Proceedings  of  Royod  Society  of  Edinburgh,         [siss. 

respiratory  movements ;  each  *  rise '  gives  the  amount  of  air 
expired ;  inspiration  occurs  during  the  *  tread '  of  each  step ;  the 
intervals  between  the  horizontal  lines  represent  500  c.c. ;  the  time 
tracing  shows  a  mark  eveiy  ten  seconds. 

The  tracings  reproduced  in  figs.  3,  4  and  5  were  all  taken 
at  the  same  time  and  from  the  same  individual.  The  experiment 
begins  in  each  case  at  the  bottom,  and  is  continued  until  the  pen 
has  nearly  reached  the  top  of  the  paper.  The  drum  was  then 
stopped  and  the  cylinder  (and  pen)  lowered  (continuous  vertical 


Fio.  4. — Supine  pressnie  method. 

line),  and  after  a  brief  interval  of  natural  respiration  another 
record  of  the  particular  mode  of  artificial  respiration  Avhich  Avas 
1)eing  investigated  was  taken.  Fig.  3  illustrates  the  amounts  of 
air  exchanged  in  the  employment  of  the  Silvester  method* 
(forcible  raising  and  subsequently  lowering  the  arms,  followed  by 
lateral  pressure  upon  the  chest);  fig.  4,  the  amount  exchanged  when 
the  Howard  method  t  was  used ;  and  fig,  5,  the  amount  exchanged 
by  intermittent  pressure  over  the  lower  ribs,  witli   the  subject 

*  H.  R.  Silvester,  The  Discovery  of  the  Physiological  Method  of  inducing 
Respiration  in  Cases  of  apparent  Death  froni  Drowning^  Chloroform^  Still-birth, 
Noxious  OaseSt  etc.  etc.,  3rd  edition,  London,  1863. 

t  B.  Howard,  Plain  Rules  for  tlie  Restoration  of  Persons  apjyarently  Dead 
from  Drcvming,  New  York,  1869. 


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1903-4.]  Prof.  Schafer  07i  Artificial  Respiration  in  Man,        43 

in  the  prone  position.  The  amount  of  pressure  used  in  the  last 
two  methods  was  approximately  the  same,  having  been  produced 
by  throwing  the  whole  weight  of  the  fore  part  of  the  body  of 
the  operator  upon  his  hands,  which  were  placed  over  the  lowest 
part  of  the  thorax  of  the  subject,  the  only  diflference  being  that 
in  the  one  case  (Howard)  the  subject  was  supine,  in  the  other 
prone.  The  pressure  was  in  every  case  applied  and  removed 
gradually;    a  pressure    of  about   60  lbs.  was    thereby  exerted. 


Fio,  5. — Prone  pressure  method. 

Fig.  6  shows  two  tracings  obtained  by  permitting  the  subject 
to  breathe,  under  approximately  natural  conditions,  into  the 
spirometer,  and  the  steps  on  these  tracings  give,  therefore,  an 
idea  of  the  amount  of  tidal  air.  The  rate  of  respiration  on  this 
occasion  was  about  16  per  minute,  and  the  average  amount  of 
air  exchanged  at  each  respiration  {i.e,  the  amount  of  tidal  air) 
was  385  c.c,  or  6160  c.c.  per  minute.  Before  and  after  these 
two  tracings,  others  were  made  with  employment  of  the  prone- 
pressure  method ;  and  these,  which  are  also  shown  in  the  figure, 
illustrate  well  the  efficiency  of  that  nietliod  in  providing  a  due 
exchange  of  air. 


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44  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Ediriburgh,  [sbss. 

The  following  tables  will  serve  to  show  the  results  yielded  by 
the  four  principal  methods  which  have  been  recommended  for 
Artificial  respiration  in  man.  In  each  case  the  respirations  were 
performed  during  five  minutes,  but  as  the  spirometer  was  only 
graduated  to  ten  litres,  it  was  necessary  to  take  the  amount  of 
«ir  yielded  by  each  minute  separately.  In  the  intervals  the 
subject  was  allowed  to  breathe  naturally.  There  are  also  two 
tables  (I.  and  II.)  giving  the  amount  of  air  breathed  naturally 
into  the  spirometer,  the   circumstances  being  otherwise  similar. 


Fig.  (5.— Two  mi<UlIe  traciiig^i,  uatural  respiration  ;  Iwo  lateral 
tracinj(8,  artificial  respiration  1»y  prone  pressure  method. 


In  the  one  series  of  these  the  subject  was  supine,  in  the  other 
prone.  Since,  from  the  result  recorded  in  these  two  tables,  it 
appeared  that  the  normal  rate  of  respiration  was  about  13  per 
minute  in  the  subject  under  the  conditions  of  the  experiment, 
this  was  the  rate  aimed  at  in  performing  artificial  respiration. 
The  same  operator  and  the  same  subject  took  part  in  all  the 
experiments.  The  amount  of  pressure  produced  by  the  weight 
of  the  upper  part  of  the  body  of  the  operator  when  thrown 
forward  on  to  his  hands  in  performing  the  artificial  respirations, 
shown  in  Tables  FV.  and  VI.,  was  determined  to  be  about  60  lbs. 
The  statistics  of  the   subject   of  experiment  are   as   follows: — 


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1903-4.]  Prof.  Schafer  on  Artificial  Respiration  in  Man,        45 

Male ;  age,  23 ;  occupation,  laboratory  attendant ;  height,  5  feet 
7\  inches  (1*71  m.);  chest  measurement  (at  mammary  line  and 
in  full  inspiration),  38^  inches  (0-978  m.) ;  weight,  10  stone  1 J 
lbs.  (64  kilog.) ;  vital  capacity,  4450  c.c. 

Table  I. — Tidal  Air  of  Natural  Re$piration — »upine  poBiiian. 


Number  of 
Bespirations. 

Amount  of  Air 
in  Cubic  Cent 

Ist  minute 

2nd      „            

3rd      „ 

4th      , 

5th      „ 

14 
13 
14 
13 
12 

6,700 
6,200 
6,500 
6,600 
6,800 

In  5  minutes, 

! 

66 
respirations. 

82,800  O.C. 
air  respired. 

Remarks, — The  average  number  of  respirations  per  minute  was- 
13.  The  average  amount  of  air  exchanged  per  respiration  was- 
489  C.C.,  and  per  minute  6460  c.c. 

Table  II. — Tidal  Air  of  Natural  Retpiration — prone  position. 


Number  of 
Respirations. 

12 
12 
12 
13 
18 

Amount  of  Air 
in  Cubic  Cent. 

1st  minute, 

2nd     „ 

8rd      „ 

4th      „ 

5th      „ 

5,800 
6,000 
5,000 
4,200 
5,700 

In  5  minutes 

62 
respirations. 

26,200  C.C. 
air  respired. 

Remarks. — This  gives  about  12 J  respirations  per  minute,  with 
an  air  exchange  per  respiration  of  422  c.c,  and  per  minute  of 
5240  c.c. 

Combining  the  results  given  in  Tables  I.  and  II.,  the  tidal  air  of 
the  individual  under  experiment  averages  456  c.c. 


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46 


Froeeedifigs  of  Royal  Society  of  EdivJtmrgh. 


[' 


Table  III. — Silvester  Method.  (Forcible  traction  upon  the  anns, 
followed  by  bringing  of  the  arms  back  to  the  side  of  the  chest 
and  pressure  upon  the  chest.) 


Number  of 
Respirations. 

Amount  of  Air 
in  Cubic  Cent. 

Ist  minate, 

2nd     „            

8rd      „            

4th 

6th      „ 

13 
12 
13 
13 
13 

3,700* 

2,100 

1,600 

1,700 

2,300 

In  5  minutes, 

64 
respirationsL 

11,400  cc. 
air  exchanged. 

Remarki, — The  average  number  of  respirations  per  minute  was 
12*8,  and  the  amount  of  air  exchanged  per  respiration  averaged 
178  C.C.,  and  per  minute  2280  cc. 

The  amount  of  physical  exertion  required  to  effect  even  this 
■amount  of  air  exchange  was  very  great,  and  it  would  have  been 
impossible  to  continue  it  for  any  length  of  time.  Moreover,  the  sub- 
ject could  scarcely  sustain  the  effort  not  to  breathe,  for  the  amount  of 
air  he  was  receiving  was  quite  inadequate,  his  natural  tidal  air  being 
about  450  cc.  per  respiration,  and  5850  cc  per  minute  (see  Tables 
I.  and  IL).  The  subject  was  on  the  ground,  with  a  folded  coat  under 
the  shoulders ;  the  operator  at  his  head,  in  a  semi-kneeling  posture. 

Table  IV. — Supine Preisure (Hofoard^e)  Method.  (Intermittent  pres- 
sure over  the  lower  ribs,  with  the  subject  in  the  supine  position. 


Number  of 
Respirations. 

Amount  of  Air 
in  Cubic  Cent. 

1st  minute, 

2nd      „ 

8rd      „ 

4th      „ 

6th 

14 
14 
14 
13 
13 

4,000 
4,100 
3,900 
3,500 
4,600 

In  5  minutes, 

64 
respirations. 

20,100  CO. 
air  exchanged. 

*  The  relatively  large  amount  recorded  here  was  probably  due  to  the  lungs 
having  been  unusually  well  filled  by  the  subject  just  before  the  experiment 
•commenced. 


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1903-4.]  Prof.  Schafer  on  Artificial  Respiration  in  Man,        47 

Bemarks. — The  average  niunber  of  respirations  was  13*6  per 
minute,  and  the  amount  of  air  exchanged  works  out  at  295  c.c. 
per  respiration,  and  4020  c.a  per  minute.  Very  little  physical 
exertion  is  required  with  this  method,  especially  with  the  patient 
on  the  floor,  since  it  merely  consists  in  throwing  the  weight  of  the 
operator's  body  forward  upon  his  hands  and  alternately  swinging 
back  to  relieve  the  pressure.  The  amount  exchanged  in  this 
experiment,  although  far  more  than  by  the  Silvester  method,  was 
not  up  to  the  tidal  air  standard,  but  the  deficit  was  not  sufficient 
to  cause  any  feeling  of  distress  to  the  subject  of  the  experiment 
during  the  minute  that  each  bout  of  respirations  lasted. 

Table  V. — Marshall  Hall  Method*  (The  patient  is  laid  prone 
and  rolled  over  to  one  side  and  back  again,  and  so  alternately. 
When  in  the  prone  position,  pressure  was  during  three  of 
the  five-minute  intervals  exercised  upon  the  back  of  the 
chest.) 


Number  of 
Kespirations. 


let  minute  (with  pressure), 

2nd     „      (with  pressure),       .        .  | 

8rd      „      (withoutpressure;  rolling 

only), ' 

4th  minute  (without  pressure  ;  rolling 

only), 

5th  minute  (with  pressure), 


13 
14 

12 

12 
12 


Amount  of  Air 
in  Cubic  Cent. 


3,100 
8,600 

2,400 

2,200 
8,300 


In  5  minutes. 


63 
I     respirations. 


14,500  cc. 
air  exchanged. 


Remarks, — The  average  number  of  respirations  was  12*6  per 
minute,  and  the  amount  of  air  exchanged  per  respiration  comes  to 
230  c.c.  If  the  three  minutes  during  which  pressure  was  alter- 
nated with  the  rolling  over  are  alone  taken  into  consideration, 
the  exchange  with  each  respiration  works  out  at  254  c.c.  The 
rolling  without  pressure  gave  192  c.c.  per  respiration.  Since  the 
method  as  recommended  by  Marshall  Hall  embraces  alternating 

*  Marshall  Hall,  Prone  and  Postural  Respiration  in  Drovming^  etc. , 
London,  1857. 


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48  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh,  [sess. 

pressure  upon  the  back,  the  highest  of  these  three  numbers  may 
be  adopted,  viz.,  254  c.c.  per  respiration  (3300  c.c.  per  minute). 
This  amount,  as  compared  with  the  tidal  air  of  450  cc  per 
respiration,  and  5850  c.c.  per  minute,  is  obviously  inadequate ;  and, 
conformably  with  this,  the  subject  experienced  distinct  distress 
towards  the  end  of  each  minute,  even  when  pressure  was  used. 
In  the  experiments  without  pressure,  the  minutes  had  to  be  cut  up 
on  this  account  into  two  periods  of  half  a  minute  each. 

Although  not  a  great  deal  of  physical  exertion  is  required  to 
roll  a  body  half  over  in  this  way  some  12  or  13  times  a  minute 
and  alternately  to  press  upon  the  back,  yet  the  labour  is  much 
greater  than  that  required  by  the  simple  pressure  method.  Such 
efficiency  as  the  method  may  have  depends  largely  upon  the 
alternating  pT*e8sure,  for  without  this  the  rolling  is  quite  ineffective. 
The  reason  why  this  pressure  produces  less  effect  than  in  the 
method  next  to  be  considered  appears  due  to  the  fact  that  the 
time  taken  up  by  the  rolling  enables  less  time  to  be  given  to  the 
pressure,  so  that  this  is  almost  necessarily  inadequately  performed 
if  the  normal  rate  of  respiration  is  kept  up. 

Tablb  VI. — Prone  Preeeure  Method.* — (This  is  similar  to  the 
Howard  method  (intermittent  pressure  on  the  lower  ribs),, 
but  the  subject  is  in  the  prone  position.) 


Number  of         Amount  of  Air 
Respirations.        in  Cubic  Cent 

1st  minute, 

2nd      „ 

8rd      „ 

4th       , 

6th       „ 

12  6,100 

13  6,800 

14  6,760 
12                        7,000 

14                        7,200 

1 

6  minutes, 

66                      88,860 
respirations. 

Remarks, — The  rate  of  respiration  was  on  the  average  13,  and 
the  amount  of  air  exchanged  averaged  520  c.c.  per  respiration, 

*  This  method  is  described  in  a  paper  communicated  by  the  author  to  the 
Royal  Medical  and  Chirurgical  Society,  which  was  read  on  December  8th,  1903, 
and  will  be  published  in  the  Med,  Chir,  Trans, 


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1903-4.]  Prof.  Schafer  on  Artificial  Respiration  in  Man,        49 

and  6760  cc.  per  minute.  It  is  the  only  method  which,  in  this 
series  of  experiments,  gave  an  amount  equal  to  the  normal  tidal 
air  of  the  individual — which  was,  in  fact,  somewhat  exceeded. 
Not  that  it  is  impossible  by  other  methods  (especially  those  of 
Howard  and  Marshall  Hall)  to  obtain  larger  figures  for  the  ex- 
change air  than  those  given  in  the  tables  here  shown — figures 
equal  to  or  even  larger  than  the  tidal  air — ^but  merely  because  it 
is  more  difficult  to  do  so  at  the  rate  of  artificial  respiration  at 
which  these  experiments  were  carried  on.  The  most  important  fact 
which  the  tables  show  is  that  at  this  rate  (which  is  the  normal 
rate  of  this  particular  individual,  and  not  by  any  means  a  fast 
rate),  it  is  easily  possible  to  pump  far  more  air  into  and  out  of  the 
chest  by  the  prone-pressure  method  than  by  any  of  the  methods 
generally  employed.  The  actual  pressure  exerted  upon  the  prone 
subject  was  not  greater,  probably  rather  less,  than  upon  the  supine 
subject,  in  which  the  fvll  weight  of  the  fore  part  of  the  operator's 
body  was  certainly  thrown  upon  the  lower  ribs,  whereas  in  the 
similar  experiments  upon  the  prone  subject  the  outflow  of  air  on 
making  pressure  on  these  ribs  was  so  abundant  and  easy  that  there 
was  a  tendency  for  the  operator  not  to  throw  the  whole  weight  on 
the  hands;  even  more  air,  therefore,  could  have  been  exchanged 
if  desired. 


Table  VII. — The  follotcing  Table  gives  ilie  main  results  of  all 
the  foregoing  Tables  in  a  summarised  form. 


Mode  of  Resi^ration. 

Number 
per  Minute. 

Amount  of  Air 

exchanged  per 

Respiration. 

Amount  of  Air 
exchanged 
per  Minute. 

Natural  (supine), 
Natural  (prone), 
Prone  pressure, . 
Supine  pressure, 
Boiling  (with  pressure),      . 
Kolling  (without  pressure). 
Traction  (with  pressure),    . 

13 

12-6 

13 

13-6 

13 

12 

12-8 

489  cc. 
422   „ 
520   „ 
295    „ 
264    „ 
192   „ 
178    „ 

6,460  cc. 
6,240   „ 
6,760    „ 
4,020   .. 
3,300    „ 
2,300    „ 
2,280   „ 

Results  similar  in  character  to  the  above  have  been  yielded  by 
many  experiments,  both  upon  the  same  andupondifferentindividuals. 
These  experiments  all  show  that  by  far  the  most  efficient  method 

PROC.  ROY.  SOC.  EDIN. — VOL.  XXV.  4 


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50  Proceedings  of  Roycd  Society  of  Edinburgh,         [sess. 

of  performing  artificial  respiration  is  that  of  intermittent  preuure 
upon  (he  lower  ribs  with  the  subject  in  the  prone  position.  It  is 
also  the  easiest  to  perform,  requiring  practically  no  exertion,  as 
the  weight  of  the  operator's  body  produces  the  effect,  and  the 
swinging  forwards  and  backwards  some  thirteen  times  a  minute, 
which  is  alone  required,  is  by  no  means  fatiguing.*  This  statement 
also  applies  to  the  supine-pressure  method  when  eflfected  slowly  and 
without  undue  violence.  But  not  only  is  this  method  less  efficient 
than  the  prone-pressure  method,  but  there  are  undoubted  dangers 
attending  it,  especially  in  those  cases  where  the  asphyxial  condition 
is  due  to  drowning.  For  in  drowned  individuals  the  liver  is 
enormously  swollen  and  congested,  and  ruptures  easily,  as  Dr 
Herring  and  I  found  when  endeavouring  to  resuscitate  drowned 
dogs  by  this  method  of  artificial  respiration.!  And  further, 
the  supine  position  is  contra-indicated  both  in  drowning  and  in 
asphyxia  generally,  since  it  involves  the  risk  of  obstruction  of 
the  pharynx  by  the  falling  back  of  the  tongue,  and  also  fails  to 
facilitate  the  escape  of  water,  mucus,  and  vomited  matter  from 
the  mouth  and  nostrils. 

The  Silvester  method,  as  compared  with  the  others,  has  nothing 
in  its  favour.  It  has  all  the  disadvantages  of  the  supine  position, 
is  most  laborious,  and  is  relatively  inefficient.  As  regards  the 
Marshall  Hall  method,  the  most  effectual  part  of  that  method  is 
the  exertion  of  pressure  in  the  prone  position ;  the  rolling  over  is 
quite  unnecessary,  and  attended  by  manifest  disadvantages.  The 
addition  to  this  method  which  is  advocated  by  Bowles,  %  consisting 
in  raising  the  one  arm  over  the  head  after  the  body  is  placed  in 
the  lateral  position,  has  been  found,  in  measurements  we  have  made, 
to  introduce  no  serious  augmentation  in  the  amount  of  air  ex- 
changed, but  merely  serves  to  render  it  still  more  difficult  to  per- 
form the  respiratory  movements  efficiently  at  the  necessary  rate. 

•  I  have  on  one  occasion  continued  it  for  nearly  an  hour  without  experi- 
encing the  least  fatigue,  and  without  the  subject  having  any  desire  to  breathe 
naturally  or  feeling  at  all  inconvenienced. 

t  Report  of  CJommittee  of  Royal  Medical  and  Chirurgical  Society,  op.  eU. 

t  R.  L.  Bowles,  A  Method  for  the  Treatment  of  th^  apparcrUly  Drowned, 
Loudon,  1903. 

[Isstied  separately  January  2P,  1904.) 


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Ptoe.  Ruy,  Socy.  of  Eiiin.] 


[Vol.  XXV. 


Prof.  E.  A.  Sch.\fer. 


Fig.  '1. 


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i»08-4.]  Physico-Ghemical  Investigations  in  Amide  Oroup,     51 


Physico-Chemical  Investigations  in  the  Amide  Group. 
By  Charles  R  Pawsitt,  Ph.D.,  B.Sc.  (Edin.  and  Lond.). 
Communicated  by  Professor  Crum  Brown. 

(MS.  received  December  14.     Read  December  21,  1903.) 

Some  time  ago,  while  studying  the  chemical  dynamics  of  the 
changes  which  occur  in  solutions  of  urea  or  carbamide,*  I  came 
upon  some  rather  unexpected  results  which  led  me  to  hope  that 
investigations  conducted  on  somewhat  the  same  lines  with  other 
substances  of  the  amide  group  might  prove  to  yield  results  of  some 
interest.  The  amides  referred  to  are  those  derived  from  carboxylic 
acids.  While  proceeding  to  this  investigation  I  noticed  some 
measurements,  t  obtained  in  connection  with  the  viscosity  of 
aqueous  solutions  of  carbamide,  which  appeared  of  sufficient 
interest  to  demand  an  inquiry  into  the  nature  of  solutions  of 
this  class  of  substances  before  proceeding  further  with  the  subject 
of  inquiry  in  the  manner  at  first  intended. 

The  Viscosity  of  the  Amides  in  Aqueous  Solution, 

The  viscosity  of  solutions  is  a  problem  on  which  a  considerable 
amount  of  work  has  been  carried  out,  and  the  way  in  which  the 
viscosity  of  a  solution  changes  with  the  concentration  of  the  sub- 
stance dissolved  has  been  found  to  be  generally  in  agreement  with 

the  formula 

7.  =  A«(i), 

where  -rj,  is  the  viscosity  of  a  solution  of  concentration  «,  the 

viscosity  of  water  being  taken  as  unity  and  where  A  is  a  constant 

Some  observers  have  shown  that  results  occasionally  follow   the 

formula 

i7,=  l+aa;(ii), 

where  *a'  is  a  constant.     It  will  be   noticed,  however,  that  if 

•  ZeU.  fUr  phygikal.  ChtmU,  41,  601  (1902). 

t  Rudorf,  ZeU.  filr  physikaL  Chemie,  43,  267  (1903). 


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52 


Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh.         [« 


'  a '  is  small  and  also  z,  equation  (ii)  ib  really  a  particular  caae 
of  equation  (i) ;  for  we  may  put  (i)  in  the  form 


i7*»l+a;IogeA  + 
or,  putting  log^ A  «  a 


a:*log^2A    gfilogiJi 


2' 


3! 


i7,=  l+aar+-2y  +  -3y  + 


(iii). 


Considering  aqueous  solutions,  we  may  (roughly)  divide  the 
dissolved  substances  into  electrolytes  and  non-electrolytes.  In 
the  former  class  substances  are  known,  e,g,  potassium  chloride, 
which  do  not  follow  the  above  formula  (iii),  but  possess  what  may 
be  called  a  *  negative  '  viscosity.  Thus  the  viscosity  of  }  normal 
potassium  chloride  is  less  than  that  of  water.  Up  to  the  present 
no  non-electrolyte  has  been  found  to  show  this  '  negative  * 
viscosity.  In  the  paper  mentioned  above,  Rudorf  drew  attention 
to  the  fact  that  carbamide  in  dilute  aqueous  solution  shows  a 
'negative'  viscosity.  I  have  repeated  these  measurements,  and 
have  also  made  determinations  of  the  viscosity  of  acetamide  in 
solution.  These  substances  show  a  normal  behaviour  in  their 
depression  of  the  freezing-point.* 


Carhamidft  (Urea). 

Concei 

itration. 

% 

^ 

A 

tV 

mol. 

1-005    .. 

.     1-005     .. 

-0 

i 

»>           • 

1012     .. 

.     1011     .. 

.     -  -001 

i 

M 

1-024     .. 

.     1-022     . 

.     --002 

mol. 

1-0 16     .. 

.     1-046     . 

2 

»» 

1-089     .. 

.     1092     . 

'.     +-*()03 

Acetamide, 

Concentration. 

% 

^ 

A 

1  mol. 

1-013    .. 

.     1-014     .. 

.     +-001 

■ 

f$           * 

1-028    .. 

.     1-028     .. 

. 

[ 

»i           • 

T067     .. 

.     1-057     .. 

. 

mol. 

1-117     .. 

.     1-118     .. 

*.     +-001 

2 

f  *           • 

1-260     .. 

.     1-250     .. 

T7i  is  the  viscosity  determined  experimentally ;  172  that  calculated 
from  equation  (iii).    A  is  difference  of  the  calculated  value  from 
that  observed ;  (a)  in  the  case  of  carbamide  being  taken  as  -044, 
♦  ZeilschnfifUr  phytikal  Che'mie,  2,  491  (1889). 


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i9(»-4.]  PhysicO'Chemical  Investigations  in  Amide  Oroup.     53 


and  in  the  case  of  acetamid  as  '111.  The  calculated  and  observed 
values  agree  well  with  one  another.  There  is  no  indication  of 
any  negative  viscosity  in  the  case  of  carbamide.  As  the  substance 
employed  was  very  pure,  I  have  some  difficulty  in  explaining  the 
different  result  obtained  by  Budorf.  In  case  the  solution  used  by 
him  had  undeigone  any  decomposition  (into  ammonium  cyanate), 
I  heated  some  \  moL  solution  of  urea  for  an  hour  at  100*  C.  to 
see  whether  the  production  of  ammonium  cyanate  would  affect  the 
result:  the  solution  had  a  viscosity  almost  identical  with  the 
result  previously  obtained  for  pure  urea,  an  increase  of  *002  being 
found. 

Thb  Chemical  Naturb  of  ths  AmoBa 

The  amides  are  above  described  as  non-electrolytes,  but  I 
thought  it  might  be  of  interest  to  inquire  as  to  how  far  this  was 
the  case,  and  to  what  the  amides  owe  such  conductivity  as  they  do 
possess.  In  the  following  measurements  I  have  used  urea  as  the 
amide. 

The  amides  are  known  to  form  compounds  with  acids.  Thus 
urea   and  hydrochloric  acid  give  the  compound  CO(NH3)2,HCL 

These  compounds  are  split  up  very  largely  into  amide  and  acid 
again  by  dissolving  in  water. 

Walker  showed  *  that  the  concentration  of  free  acid  in  a  solu- 
tion is  gradually  decreased  by  the  addition  of  urea,  and  the 
relations  here  may  be.  represented  by  the  formula 

CcO(NHa),  X  ChCI  _  ^ 
CoO(NH,)B,Ha 

where  C,  is  the  concentration  of  the  substance  x  and  K  is  a 
constant 

He  found  that  if  the  concentration  of  H*  ions  in  normal 
hydrochloric  acid  be  represented  by  the  number  315  (25*  C),  then 
the  concentration  after  addition  of  urea  was  as  follows : — 
Norm.  HCl 315 


1.    XJ.Vyl                  .                 .                 .                 .                 . 

-i-imoLCO(NH2)2 

.     237 

1          +  ^     »            >» 

.     184 

f                   "r  -*        l»                       »» 

.     114 

>9                +3       „                   „ 

.       82 

»                    +  4        >»                        » 

.      60 

*  ZeiL  fUr  physikaL.  ChemU,  4,  319 


1889). 


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54  Proceedivgs  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh,  [j 

I  have  represented  these  results  in  fig,  1. 

The  diminution  inVoncentration|offthe''H'^ionsmay  befolsened. 


J«o 


*•« 


Fig.  1. 


Fig.  2. 


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1902—4.]  Physico-Chemicdl  hivestu/atiom  in  Amide  Group,     55 

by  making  measurements  of  the  electrical  conductivity.  On  tlie 
addition  of  urea  we  have  the  ion  CO(NH2)2H'  forming  at  the 
expense  of  tlie  H*  ion,  but  the  mobility  of  this  new  ion,  as  indeed 
of  all  other  kations,  is  considerably  less  than  that  of  H*.  Below 
are  results  I  have  obtained  for  urea  and  hydrochloric  acid  at 
34*2*  C.  (Tlie  relations  are  practically  unaltered  at  other  tempera- 
tures between  25'  and  100*  C.) 


Urea  ami  HydrocfUortc  Acid, 


i  nomi 


HCl 


Concentration. 

+  iniol   CO(NHj)a 
+  i       .. 

+  1  M 

+  J'6   >, 
+  3-2   „ 


Moloc.  Conductivity. 

406*8 

353 

812 

250 

206 

147-6 


These  results  are  reproduced  in  figure  2,  giving  a  curve  very 
similar  to  that  in  figure  1.  It  will  be  noticed  in  these  curves  that 
the  effect  produced  by  the  urea  falls  off  greatly  in  the  higher 
concentrations.* 

To  show  the  effect  of  urea  on  the  electrical  conductivity  of  a 
neutral  salt  in  solution,  I  have  measured  the  conductivity  of  a 
solution  of  potassium  chloride  with  varying  additions  of  urea. 

Urea  and  Potamum  Chloride;  25"  C. 


Concentration. 

Molec.  Conductivity. 

i  norm.  KCl 

116-4 

+ J  mol.  COCNHa),  .        .        . 

115-3 

+  4 

114-6 

»i            «  •      II          |}         ... 

111-9 

+  1-6   „          „         .         .         . 

1087 

+3  2  „           „         .         .         . 

100-1 

It  w^ill  be  seen  that  the  percentage  decrease  here  is  very  much 
less  than  in  the  last  case.  The  results  are  given  in  the  curve 
(fig.  3).  The  form  of  the  curve  is  also  different  from  the  last 
case,  being  almost  a  straight  line,  but  slightly  concave  towards  the 
abscissa  axis. 

In  the  present  case  we  may  assume  that  there  is  no  measurable 
salt  formation  in  solution.     The  decrease  of  conductivity  may  be 

•  Compare  also  t/itmm.  Chem.  Soc,,  79,  707(1901). 


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56 


Proceedings  of  Roycd  Society  of  Edinburgh, 


[sBsa. 


looked  on  as  due  to  increased  viscosity  of  the  solution,  as  will  be 
shown  further  on. 

O 

An  amide  is  usually  represented  by  the  formula  R  -  C  -  NH^ 

where  R  stands  for  some  radical.     The  formula  R  -  C  -  OH  has 

I 
NH 

also  been  suggested,  although  recent  work  *  favours  the  adoption 

of  the  former.     In   investigating   the  constitution  of  such  sub- 


//4 


/08 


stances,  it  is  generally  agreed  that  physical  methods  give  the  most 
reliable   results   to  draw  conclusions  from.     Now,  if  R  -  C  -  OH 

ii 
NH 

represented  the  formula  of  an  amide,  we  should  expect  a  substance 

of  this  kind  to  show  at   least   feebly   acid   properties.     I   have 

♦  BtrU  Bcrlchte,  84,  3142,  3161,  3658. 


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1908-4.]  PkysicO'Ghemical  Investigations  in  Amide  Oroup,     57 

investigated  this  by  measuring   the   electrical    conductivity    of 
sodium  hydrate  solution  with  varying  additions  of  urea.* 

Sodium  Hydrate  and.  Urea;  25*  C. 


CoDcentimtion. 
i  norm.  NaOH, 


+  ^  urea, 

+  M     » 

+  2M  „ 


Molec.  Condactivity. 
194-2 
191-8 

188-7 

183-0 
1720 


By  adding  ^  mol.  urea  to  hydrochloric  acid,  potassium  chloride 


/rr 


ft 2 


Fio.  4. 

and  sodium  hydroxide,  we  obtain  depressions  of  the  conductivity 
by  23*6%,  1*6%,  and  2*8%  respectively.  As,  among  anions,  -  OH' 
wanders  faster  than  any  other  ion,  we  would  have  expected  a  much 

*  Winkelblech  {Zeit,  fUr  physiJcal,  Chemic,  86,  676  {l90l})  has  experi- 
mented with  dilute  solntions  ^  to  yf^  molec. ;  at  these  dilations  signs  of 
salt  formation  could  hardly  be  expected. 


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58  Proceedings  of  Rayed  Society  of  JSdiriburgh.  [sbss. 

larger  decrease  in  the  last  case  than  that  actually  found  if  there 
had  been  any  acidic  character  at  all  about  urea.  Further,  the 
form  of  the  curve  obtained  here  (figure  4)  resembles  very  closely 
that  obtained  for  the  case  of  urea  and  potassium  chloride.  We 
conclude,  then,  that  there  is  no  measurable  acid  function  in  the 
amides.  As  the  basic  character  is  itself  only  a  slight  one, 
we  should  expect  that  aqueous  urea  solutions  would  conduct 
the  electric  current  feebly.  The  ions  here  in  the  case  of 
urea  are   CO(NH2)2H"  and  -  OH',  and  the  dissociation  constant 

K=«?5|^^)£l^j55^ha6   been   calculated   from   the  amount 
CO(NH2)2H20 

of  salt  formation  between  urea  and  hydrochloric  acid*  to  be 
1*5  X  1 0"*"  (25*  C. ).  The  value  of  the  dissociation  constant  for  water 
is  '8  X  10"".  Such  water  has  a  specific  conductivity  of  '05  x  10"*, 
but  it  is  impossible,  under  ordinary  conditions,  to  prepare  water  any- 
thing like  this.  With  water  purified  by  ordinary  methods  we  should 
be  able  to  prepare  a  solution  of  urea  having  almost  identically  the 
same  conductivity  as  the   water  used.     Using  water    of    spec. 

conductivity  1*5  x  10"*,  I  have  prepared  urea  solutions  (—  )  having 

a  conductivity  indistinguishable  from  that  of  the  water.  The  purest 
specimen  of  urea  obtained  by  recrystallisation  from  alcohol  gave 
a  molecular  solution  (60  grams  per  litre)  of  spec  conductivity 
2*8  X  10"^  There  is  little  doubt  that  this  small  amount  of  con- 
ductivity, in  excess  of  that  of  the  pure  water,  is  due  to  impurity  in 
the  urea,  but  the  determination  is  of  interest  in  so  far  as  it  shows 
how  pure  such  substances  may  be  obtained  by  the  ordinary  process 
of  recrystallisation.  In  preparing  other  amides  in  a  pure  state  I 
have  found  the  determination  of  electrical  conductivity  a  very 
useful  means  of  following  the  purification. 

TTie  Viscosity  of  some  of  the  above-mentioned  Solutions. 

I  next  give  some  measurements  of  the  viscosity  of  solutions 
containing  (a)  potassium  chloride  and  urea,  (b)  hydrochloric  acid 
and  urea;  and  in  making  these  determinations  I  have  had  the 
valuable  assistance  of  Mr  Clerk  Ranken,  B.Sc,  to  whom  I  wish 

•  Wood,  Joum.  Chtm.  Soc.,  88,  484  (1903). 


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1908-4.]  Phy8ic(hChemiccd  Investigations  in  Amide  Chroup,     59 

to  express  my  thanks.     With  these  solutions  I  have  calculated 
values  of  the  viscosity  from  the  formula 


a^^x^  .  a^ji^ 


where  R  is  the  viscosity  of  the  KCl  or  HCl  and  the  other  letters  are 
as  before. 

Potamum  Chlorirfe  and  Urea  (25*  C). 


Concentration. 

Viscosity 

A 

ObservtKl. 

Calculated. 

1*()06 
1-017 
1*026 
1-040 
1-068 
1-068 

i  norm.  ECl 

„            +J  mol.  urea,    . 

+  i        »,           .        . 
+  •7      „           .        . 
+  1        „           .        . 
+  1-4     „ 
+  1-6     „ 

•996 
1  007 
1-017 
1-080 
1-048 
1-066 
1-076 

-•001 

-'•004 
-•008 
-008 
-•007 

'  a '  is  here  taken  equal  to  '044,  as  also  in  the  next  series. 
ffydrnchloric  Acid  and  Urea  (25°  C). 


Viscosity 

Conoen  trat  ion 

^ 

Observed.    Calculated. 

i  norm.  HCl 

1088      ' 

„            +i  mol.  urea     . 

1046             1-046 

... 

+  4          M              .          . 

1064             1066 

+  •002 

+  •7       „ 

1068             1-066 

+  •002 

+  1           M                .           • 

1-081             1  080 

-001 

+  1-4     „ 

1-102             1099 

-•003 

+  1-6     „ 

1-114       !       1-109 

-006 

The  observed  and  calculated  values  for  the  case  of  KCl  and 
CO(NH2)2  agree  very  well  up  to  1  mol.  urea.  For  the  case  HCl 
and  CO(NH2)2  the  agreement  is  also  fairly  good. 

The  viscosity  of  KCl  and  CO(NH2)2  is  represented  in  fig.  5 : 
it  appears  as  almost  an  exact  reverse  *  of  the  conductivity  curve 

(fig.  3). 

*  Compare  also  Phil.  Mag.,  6,  iii.  487  (1902). 


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Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh,  [i 


60 


Summary, — (1)  The  amides  show  no  acid  character,  and  ac- 
cording to  this  view  they  are  better  represented  by  the  formula 
R-C-NHathanbyR-C-OH. 

II  II 

O  NH 

(2)  The  non-conductivity  of  the  amides  in  aqueous  solution  is 
a  good  criterion  for  their  purity. 

(3)  The  viscosity  of  pure  aqueous  solutions  of  acetamide  and 


/•*3   • 


Fio.  5, 

carbamide  follows  the  formula  rj,  =  A',  where  rj^  is  the  viscositj- 
of  a  solution  of  concentration  x  and  A  is  a  constant. 

(4)  A  comparison  of  the  viscosities  and  conductivities  of  a 
solution  of  potassium  chloride,  to  which  varying  amounts  of  an 
amide  were  added,  shows  that  the  two  are  very  closely  related. 

{Issued  separately  February  6,  1904.) 


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1908-4.]  Dr  Muir  an  General  Determinant.  61 


The  Theory  of  General  Determinants  in  the  Historiccd 
Order  of  Development  up  to  1846.  By  Thomas 
Muir,  LL.D. 

(MS.  received  August  10,  1908.     Read  November  2,  1908.) 

Since  the  year  1889,  when  the  last  of  a  series  of  six  papers 
with  a  title  similar  to  the  above  appeared,  further  research  has 
led  to  the  discovery  of  a  number  of  writings  belonging  to  the 
period  then  dealt  with,  viz.,  1693-1844.  Of  those  an  account 
is  now  given  before  proceeding  to  the  papers  of  later  date  than 
1844. 

Fontaine  (1748). 

[M^moires  donn&  h,  PAcad^mie  Hoyale  des  Sciences,  non  im 
prim^  dans  leurs  temps.  Par  M.  Fontaine*  de  cette 
Acad^mie.     588  pp.    Paris,  1764.] 

These  memoirs  of  Fontaine's,  sixteen  in  number,  cover  a  con- 
siderable variety  of  mathematical  subjects :  it  is  the  seventh  of 
the  series  which  indirectly  concerns  determinants.  There  is  not, 
however,  even  the  most  distant  connection  between  it  and  the 
work  of  Leibnitz.  The  heading  is  "  Le  calcul  integral.  Seconde 
m^thode,"  the  sixth  memoir  having  given  the  first  method.  The 
date  is  indicated  in  the  margin. 

The  matter  which  concerns  us  appears  as  a  lemma  near  the 
beginning  of  the  memoir  (p.  94).     The  passage  is  as  follows  : — 

"  Soient  quatre  nombres  quelconques 

al  ,  a2  ,  a3  ,  a\  , 

*  The  full  name  is  Alexis  Fontaine  des  Bertins,  The  very  same  collection 
was  issued  in  1770  under  the  less  appropriate  title  Traits  de  calcul  diff^entiel 
el  inUffral,  Vandermonde  is  said  to  have  been  a  pupil  of  Fontaine's  {v,  Nouv, 
AwnaUs  de  Math, ,  v.  p.  155). 


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62  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh,  [ssas. 

et  quatre  autres  nombres  aussi  quelconques 

al  ,  a2 ,  a3 ,  a4  ; 
faites 

al  a2  -  al  a2  =  oM , 

a2  aZ  -  a2  a3  =  a^2 , 

a3  a4  -  a3  a4  =  a^3 , 

al  a3  -  al  a3  =  a^l , 

a2  a4  -  a2  a4  =  a22 , 

al  a4  -  al  a4  =  a*^l , 
vous  aurez 

an  ai2  -  an  an  +  aU  a^Z  =  0." 

^ranifestlv  this  is  the  identity  which  in  later  times  came  to  be 
written 

\<hhV\HW  -  l«AI-l«2M  +  l«i&4l-l^2^8l  =  0. 

and  which,  so  far  as  we  know,  appeared  first  in  its  proper  connec- 
tion in  the  writings  of  Bezout. 

It  is  curious  to  note  that  Fontaine  was  not  satisfied  with  the 
lemma  in  this  form,  but  proceeded  to  take  "  autant  de  nombres 

quelconques  que  Ton  voudra  al,  a2, . . .  . ,  alO, "  and  wrote 

the  identity  one  hundred  and  twenty-six  times  before  he  appended 
^*  et  cetera,"  the  126th  being 

aSGa^T   -   a26  a^?   +  a^G  a^8   =   0. 

Cauchy  (1829). 

[Sur  Tequation  k  Taide  de  laquelle  on  determine  les  in^galit^s 
seculaires  des  mouvements  des  plan^tes.  Exerdces  de 
Math,,  iv. ;  or  (Euvres  (2),  ix.  pp.  172-195.] 

As  the  title  would  lead  one  to  expect,  the  determinants  which 
occur  in  this  important  memoir  belong  to  the  class  afterwards 
distinguished  by  the  name  "  axisymmetric,"  and  thus  fall  to  be 
considered  along  with  others  of  that  class.  Since,  however,  the 
proof  employed  for  one  of  the  theorems  therein  enunciated  is 
equally  applicable  to  all  kinds  of  determinants,  it  would  be 
scarcely   fair  to   omit   here  all  mention   of   the   said   theorem. 


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1903-4.]  Dr  Muir  on  General  DeterminajUs,  63 

la  modern  phraseology  its  formal  enunciation  might  stand  as 
follows : — 

S  being  any  axisymmetric  determinant,  R  the  determinant  got  by 
deleting  the  first  row  and  first  column  of  S,Y  the  determinant  got 
by  deleting  the  first  row  and  second  column  of  S,  and  Q  t]ie 
determinant  got  from  R  as  'R  from  S,  then,  if  R  =  0 

SQ  =  - Y2; 
and    the    theorem    in   general    determinants   whose    validity    is 
warranted  by  the  proof  given  is  in  later  notation — 

If  \  bgCad^  I  =  0,  then  \  agCgd^  |  •  |  biCgd^  |  =  -  |  aib2C,d4 1  •  |  c^d  J  . 
This,  it  is  readily  seen,  is  not  a  very  obscure  foreshadowing  of 
Jacobi's  identity 

I  AjBg  I  -  I  a^b^c^d^  \'\c^d^\. 

Jacobi  (1829). 

[Exercitatio  algebraica  circa  discerptionem  singularem  frac- 
tionum,  quae  plures  variabiles  involvunt.  Grelle^s  Joum., 
V.  pp.  344-364.] 

In  the  ordinary  expansion  of  (ax  +  by  +  cz-t)-^  there  are 
evidently  only  negative  powers  of  x  and  positive  powers  of  y  and 
z;  in  the  like  expansion  of  {b'y  +  cz  +  ax-t')-^  there  are  only 
n^ative  powers  of  y  and  positive  powers  of  z  and  x;  and 
similarly  for  (c^z  +  a^x  +  b^y  -  f)"^.  It  follows  from  this  that  the 
ordinary  expansion  of  (ax  +  by  +  cz-t)-^  .  (b'y  +  cz  +  ax  - 1')-^, 
{c"z  +  a''x  +  b''y-f)-\  looked  at  from  the  point  of  view  of  the 
powers  of  x,  y,  z,  contains  a  considerable  variety  of  terms;  for 
example,  terms  in  which  negative  powers  of  x  occur  along  with 
positive  powers  of  y  and  2,  terms  in  which  x  does  not  occur  at  all, 
and  so  forth.  There  is  thus  suggested  the  curious  problem  of 
partitioning  the  fraction 

1 ^^____ 

(ax-hby  +  cz-t)  (b'y  +  cz  +  ax-t')  (c^z  +  ax  +  b^y -t") 

into  a  number  of  fractions  each  of  which  is  the  equivalent  of  the 
series  of  terms  of  one  of  those  types.  This  is  the  problem  with 
which  Jacobi  is  here  concerned. 


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64  Proceedings  of  Roycd  Society  of  Edinburgh.  [i 

In  the  case  of  two  variables  he  counts  three  types  of  terms, 
viz.,  that  in  which  the  indices  of  both  x  and  y  are  negative,  that 
in  which  the  index  of  x  only  is  negative,  and  that  in  which  the 
index  of  y  only  is  negative.  In  the  case  of  three  variables  he 
counts  seven  types,  viz.,  that  in  which  the  indices  of  x,  y,  z  are  all 
negative,  the  three  in  which  the  index  of  only  one  variable  is 
negative,  and  the  three  in  which  the  index  of  only  one  variable  is 
not  negative.  These  two  cases  are  gone  fully  into,  with  the  result 
that  the  expressions  for  the  three  aggregates  in  the  former  are  all 
found  to  contain  the  factor  (ab')~\  and  the  expressions  for  the 
seven  aggregates  in  the  latter  the  factor  (a  b'c")-^.  The  reciprocal 
of  each  of  those  factors  is  recognised  as  the  common  denominator  of 
the  values  of  the  unknowns  in  a  set  of  linear  equations,  a 
denominator  "quam  quibusdam  determinantem  nuncupamus  et 
designemus  per  A."  Its  persistent  appearance  in  the  problem 
under  discussion, — a  persistency,  in  fact,  sufficient  to  suggest  the 
change  of  the  numerator  of  the  given  fraction  from  1  to  (a  b')  in 
the  case  of  two  variables  and  from  1  to  (a  b'c")  in  the  case  of  three, 
— is  remarked  upon: — "Quam  determinantem  in  hac  quaestione 
magnas  partes  agere  videbimus,  videlicet  ofunes  illaa  series  infiniias^ 
quae  ut  coefficientes  producti  propositi  evoltUi  invenimus^  ex 
eooltUione  dignitatum  negatiiHirum  determinantis  provenire.*'  Then 
fixing  the  attention  on  a  unique  term  of  the  expansion  Jacobi 
ventures  on  the  generalisation  that  the  coefficient  of 

(XX^X^ Xn-^)'^ 

in  the  expansion  of 

(uu^u^ Wn-l)-^ 

that  is  to  say,  of 

{ax  +  by-k-cz+  .  ,.y^  (b'y  +  cz  +  .. ,       )-i(c"z  +  ....       )-i 

is  the  determinant 

(a6V' )-i. 

No  proof,  however,  is  given,  save  for  the  cases  where  n  =  2  and 
n  =  3.  The  proposition  is  most  noteworthy  in  that  it  supplies  the 
generating  function  of  the  reciprocal  of  a  determinant. 

To  obtain  a  generalisation  in  a  different  direction,  viz.,  from 
(air  +  /v/)-i(^j//  +  aiar)-i    to   {ax-\rl/y)''^  (b^y-^ayc)-'^,  Jacobi   pro 


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1..      +    ... 

1 

P-a          -^ 

a-fi 

1903-4.]  Dr  Muir  on  General  DeUrminaTUs.  66 

ceeds  in  a  veiy  curious  and  interesting  way.     Denoting 


by* 


since  it  is  the  sum  of  the  infinite  series  for  ()8  -  a)  "  ^  and  (a  -  jS)  "  ^ 
he  proyes  after  a  fashion  that  its  product  by  ^  -  a  or  a  -  )3  is  0, 
and  that  therefore  its  product  by 

1  1 

7  +  mp-a) ^'       y  +  w(a-/i) 

IB  sunply  its  product  by  .     Turning  then  from  this  lemma 

to  the  product 
/       1  1         \    /         1  1         \ 

where  u^  =  a^x  +  h^  ,  t^  =  b^y  +  a^x  ,  he  substitutes  for  the 
first  factor  of  it 

h -. h.. 


\%h\^  -  I  Vol  +  ^0  K-^)  I  Vol  -  l«oM^  -  h  K-^i) 

bis  justification  being  the  fact  that 

^K  -  ^o)    =    ISM«    -    IVol    +    M^i'h)    y 
^ti  on  account  of  the  said  lemma,  he  leaves  the  term  5q  (wj  -  t^ 
out  of  both  denominators.    For  the  second  factor  there  is  thereupon 
substituted 

l«oM 

h{ I %h  \'y  -  \  Vi  i }  +  «i  { I «o^  I «  -  I  Vo I } 
.     !.?o?!il ^ 

^{|«o<il  -  l«o^U}  +  «i{l  Vol  -  \%h\^} 
*  Jaoobi  writes  it  — ^    +  — — -  with  the  caution  that  the  two  parts  are  not 

to  be  taken  as  cancelling  one  another.    Of  course,  also,  lower  down  he  does 
not  write  lo^  |  but  o^j  -  a^b^  or  later  {ajb^), 

PROC.  ROY.  SOC.  BDIN. — ^VOL.  XXV.  5 


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66  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh.         [i 

on  the  ground  that  we  have  the  identity 

«oM-K  -  'i)  =  h{WA\y  -  I  Vil}  +  <h  {l«oM«  -  I  Vol}. 

the  term  a^  {  |  ajb^  |  «  -  I  ^i^o  I  }  ^^^%  subsequently  left  out  of 
both  denominators  for  the  same  reason  as  before.  The  result  thus 
reached  is  consequently 

./     i^oM .   Ky \ 

\  I  «o*i  I  y  -  I  Vi  i        i  «o'i  I  - 1  «o*i  I  y  A 

or,  if  we  write  f ,  ij  for  the  values  of  «,  y  which  make  «,-<,«  0, 
«i  -  <i  -  0, 

Since  the  general  terms  of  the  four  doubly-infinite  series  here  are 
we  deduce 

^  _  C^" 

2_IVoJM^oM:_ 

where  m,  n  on  the  one  side  and  fi,  v  on  the  other  are  to  have  all. 
integral  values  from  -  oo  to  +00.  Since  the  coefficients  of 
tfj^t^^jx^y  on  the  two  sides  must  be  equal,  we  obtain  the  theorem : — 


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i90»-4.]           Dr  Muir  on  Oenerai  Determinants.  67 

The  coefficient  of in  the  expojisum  of- 


M   the    same   as   the    coefficient   of   to"ti"  in  the  expansion  of 
(Vo  -  VlV^'Ha^t^  -  H^^Y'^     it  i^ng  remembered  that  m  and 

n  are  of  the  same  sign  as  fi  and  v  respectively  and  tluU  m  +  n  « 
ft  +  V  -  2. 

In  similar  fashion  the ,  author  deals  with  the  case  of  three 
functions  «o  »  **i  >  ^2  ^^  three  variables  a; ,  y  ,  2  ,  proving  labori- 
ously and  not  very  neatly  the  neat  result 

-(iH^,l.)  (,4-,^,)  ishf^  « 

thence  deriving 

I  «0  ^'l  «2  !      ^M^'^+l  ttj-+l  ^2^+1        ^  a^+l  y^l  ;^P+l 

and  ending  with  the  theorem : — 

The  coefficient  of in  the  expansion  of 

1 

(a^  +  b^y  +  c^y-^\b^y  +  Ci^  +  a^xf-^\c^  +  a^-^  b^yY+^ 

is  the  same  as  the  coefficient  of  tQ^H^^tg'  in  the  expansion  of 

it  being  understood  that  m,  n,  r  are  of  tJie  sarm  sign  as  fi^  v,  p 
respectively  and  tliat  m  +  n  +  r  =  /A  +  v  +  p-3. 

The  corresponding  result^  for  n  functions  of  n  variables  are 
evident.  They  had  already  been  enunciated  in  the  introductory 
section  of  the  paper,  and  Jacobi  now  merely  adds  "  Omnino 
similia  theoremata  de  numero  quolibet  variabilium,  quae  §  1 
proposuimus,  eruuntur."     It  has  to  be  noted,  however,  that  belief 


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68  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh.         [sns. 

in  the  general  fundamental  theorem,  viz.,  that  which  includes 
(a)  and  (fi)  above,  is  more  strongly  induced  by  the  elegance  of  the 
form  of  the  theorem  than  by  the  mode  of  prool  In  §  1  it  stands 
approximately  thus— 

/ 1...  ^„1 \   /     1      + \\ /        1         + \ \ 

\%'K    h'-^J  ^-^    ^i-V  \t*,-,-d    Ci-tt-i/ 

.l(..l.-. 1 )( 1 -H \ .)....(. 1 + \ ) 

and  then  follows  the  passage  containing  the  two  deductions,  viz., 
"quam  aequationem  etiam  hunc  in  modum  repraesentare  licet: 


designantibus  Oq  ,  a^ ,  etc.  /8o  >  i^i  >  ^^'  i^^^iii^®i^>s  omnes  et 
positivos  et  negatives  a  -oo  ad  +'».  E  quo  theoremate 
videmus,  coefi&cientem  termini 

1 

xfo+'  xfii+'  —  «f!!r'^' 

in  expressione 

1 

M,,*o+l  t*/i+^  ....  t**2-l+^ 

aequalem  fore  coefficienti  termini     </i  ^/i  ...  t^-i 
in  expressione 

^  »t-i 

The  use  here  of  ^Sq  + 1  ,  )8i  +  1  ,  .  . .  .  rather  than  the  change  made 
in  the  two  special  cases  to  the  less  natural  )Sq  ,  )Si  ,  .  .  .  is  worth 
noting. 

The  theorems  of  the  remaining  four  pages  of  the  paper  have  a 
less  direct  bearing  on  our  subject. 


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190S-4.]  Dr  Muir  on  General  Determinants.  69 

Jacobi  (1833). 

[De  binis  quibuslibet  fimctionibus  homogeneis  secundi  ordinis 
per  substitntiones  lineares  in  alias  binas  transfonnandis, 

quae  solis  quadratis  variabilium  constant :  una  cum 

OreUe^s  Joum.,  xii.  pp.  1-69.] 

Jacobi's  mode  of -proving  his  theorem  regarding  a  minor  of  the 
adjugate  occupies  §  6  (pp.  9-11).  Temporarily  denoting  by  X,^  the 
left-hand  member  of  the  m^  given  equation 

Oi^^Xi  +  fla  w^«  + +«i?*'i*?n  =  y»*, 

and  by  Y«  the  left-hand  member  of  the  m^  derived  equation 

and  explaining  that  by 


[u] 


1 


«1«2  •  •  •  i*^n 

he  means  the  coefficient  of  Xi'^x^"^  •  •  •  a;„"*  in  a  certain  specified 
expansion  of  U,  he  recalls  his  paper  of  the  year  1829  on  the 
"  discerptio  singularis/'  and  affirms  that  he  had  there  proved 

"  fore 


LxA..x,J L 


sive  etiam,  quod  idem  est, 


LY,y,...yJ L 


A 


B 


^1^2- 


ac  generalius 


1 


J^ri+rt+  '  '  +rn+^ 


r  Y/'Y/'.>>Yn^1 


y^t-'^Vn 


designantibus   n  ,  r.^ ,  . . .  ,  r„  ac  «i ,  «2  >  •  •  •  i  «n    numeros 
quoslibet  integros  sive  positivos  sive  negativos/* 


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70  Proceedings  of  Boycd  Society  of  Hdinburgh.  [ana. 

A  glance,  however,  suffices  to  convince  one  that  the  concluding 
general  theorem  here  given  differs  considerably  from  the  theorem 
which  he  had  previously  enunciated  and  possibly  proved.  As 
originally  stated  the  theorem  was — 


L^o*""*"^*'"*^^ . . .  «JL7^"^U 


which  being  altered  into  the  notation  of  his  present  paper  by  the 
substitutions 


becomes 


«0i 

»«i, 

=     UJi, 

«,,.... 

t*0: 

»«*i, 

-  X, 

,  X3  , . .  .  . 

Po 

fPi* 

Y, 
"   A 

Y, 
'A  '•••• 

S: 

>'h, 

-  n, 

r, , . . . . 

^0  »  A  > 

=  «i, 

«j 

A 

=  A, 

X 

1 

•X, 

rn+ij 

X^ 

I 

■  •  *»•»+' 

A'»+^ 

1 
1+  •  ■  • 

+#»+i 

[Yi'Y,^  . 

v..] 

yi' 

%'^---i 

Using  on  both  sides  of  this  the  fact  that  if  an  expanded  function 
be  multiplied  by  the  product  of  certain  powers  of  the  variables, 
any  particular  coefficient  in  the  original  expansion  has  now  for 
facient  its  original  facient  multiplied  by  the  said  product,  we 
obtain 


1 


OJjXj  •  •  •  ^« 


•  •  •  +'"+^Lyr'+ v/«+^  •  •  •  y/»+ J L 


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1908-4.]  Dr  Muir  on  Genet'ol  Determinants.  71 

--a  statement  differing  from  Jacobi's  in  having  r's  and  s^s  on  the 
right-hand  side  where  he  has  ^s  and  r's  respectiyely.  The  over- 
sight was  probably  not  noticed  by  reason  of  the  fact  that  in  the 
special  instances  considered  by  him  the  values  of  any  r  and  the 
corresponding  8  are  the  same. 
In  the  first  of  these  instances  he  puts 

ri  =  r,  «  . . .  -  r,  =  -  1 
and  obtains 

^"^    LyxY,...yJ_j_        B  ' 

thus  arriving  at  Cauchy's  theorem  regarding  the  aci^ugate,  viz., 

B  -  A"-^ 
In  the  second  instance,  he  puts 
r,  =  ra  =  . . .  =  r„  =  -  1  ,      r^+j  -  r«+5  «  . . .  -  r,  -  0 , 


and  obtains 


r       1       1 


yi^a  •  •  •  ym 

He  then  recalls  the  fact  that  by  the  conditions  attaching  to  the 
expansion  of  the  expressions  enclosed  in  rectangular  brackets  the 
powers  of  a^i ,  Xj , . . .  a*^  contained  in  the  one  and  the  powers  of 
y^  9  Vm+i  f'iVn  contained  in  the  other  are  all  positive ;  and 
argues  that  as  we  are  concerned  only  with  terms  that  do  not 
involve  these  variables,  it  is  quite  allowable  to  put  them  all  equal 
to  0.    This  being  done  it  is  seen  that 


1 


^m+l^+i ' 


2± 


<«■,"<«■,"•  ••aJT 


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72  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh,  [sbbb. 

and 

yiVi'-Vm 

80  that  there  is  obtained 

as  was  expected. 

Jacobi  (1834). 

[Dato  systemate  n  aequationum  linearium  inter  n  incognitas, 
valores  incognitarum  per  integralia  deHnita  (n-  1)  tupHcia 
exhibentur.     OrelWs  Journ,,  xiv.  pp.  51-55] 

This  short  paper  is,  as  it  were,  a  by-product  of  the  investigation 
which  resulted  in  Jacobi's  long  memoir  of  the  preceding  year. 
Its  only  interest  for  us  at  present  lies  in  the  fact  that  values 
which  are  ordinarily  expressed  by  means  of  determinants  are  here 
given  in  the  form  of  definite  multiple  integrals.  Indeed,  instead 
of  viewing  the  result  obtained  as  being  the  solution  of  a  set  of 
simultaneous  linear  equations,  it  might  be  equally  appropriate  to 
consider  the  investigation  as  belonging  to  the  subject  of  definite 
integration.  It  will  suffice,  therefore,  merely  to  give  a  statement 
of  the  theorem  arrived  at.     In  Jacobi's  own  words,  it  is, — 

"  Sit  propositum  inter  n  incognitas  «i  i  %  ,  . . .  ,  2„  sjrstema  n 
aequationum  linearium 

6i,z,  +  />,o^,  + +  bi^„  -  m, , 


Kl^  +   ^nS^a  + +  Kn^n  =  ^n  ', 


statuamus 


X  =  [b,^x^  +  b^x^  +  •  •  •  +  bnix^] 

+  [byJXi  +  b^2  +  •  •  •  +   ^nyCnJ 


+  [hnifh.  +  b^x^  +  •  •  •  +  b^>^ , 


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1908-4.]  Dr  Muir  an  OenercU  DeterminarUs.  73 

porro 

M  =  THi^i  +  Wi^  +  •  •  •  +  m^n 
ubi 

radical!  positive  accepto ;  porro  ponamus 

V  =  ±  2  ±  ^ii^a  •  •  •  ^iw  > 

signo  ancipiti,  ante  ipsum  2  posito,  ita  determinato,  ut  valor 
ipsius  V  positivus  prodeat     Quibus  omnibus  positis,  erit 


n        ^1  __  /" 


n_,^^  r^'^^ihv^  +  6»»2  +  •  •  •  '^h^^)hxMt-'  &Pn-i^ 


int^;ralibus  (n-1)  tuplicibus  extensis  ad  omnes  valores 
reales  ipsorum  a^ ,  aij ,  . . . ,  ir„_i  et  positivos  et  negativos,  pro 
quibus  etiam  x^  realis  sit  sive  pro  quibus 

aJi'  +  i»-^^  +  •  •  •  +  4-1  <  1 ; 
et  designante  S  aut 

2.4.  ...  (n-2)W    *"*    1.3.  5  ...  (n-2)w' 
prout  w  aut  par  aut  impar." 

M0UN8  (1839). 

[D^onstration  de  la  formule  g^n^rale  qui  donne  les  valeurs 
des  inconnues  dans  les  ^juations  du  premier  degr^.  Joum. 
delAouviUe^  iv.  pp.  509-515.] 

The  real  object  of  Molins  was  simply  to  give  a  rigorous  demon- 
stration of  Cramer's  rules.  His  literary  progenitors,  so  far  as 
determinants  were  concerned,  were  apparently  Cramer,  Bezout, 
Laplace,  and  Gergonne,  the  last  of  whom,  it  may  be  remembered, 
^rote  a  paper  which  might  well  have  borne  the  same  title  as  the 


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74  Proceedings  of  R&yal  Society  of  Edinbv/rgK  [j 

above.  The  writer,  however,  whose  work  that  of  Molina  most 
closely  resembled  was  Scherk,  and  very  probably  the  two 
were  unknown  to  each  other.  Both  had  the  same  purpose  in 
view,  and  both  used  the  method  of  so-called  "  mathematical  induc- 
tion." The  difference  between  them  may  most  easily  be  explained 
by  using  a  special  example  and  Inodem  notation. 
To  make  the  solution  of  the  set  of  three  equations 

ck^x  -I-  a^y   •{-  a^  ^  a^ 

c^x   A-   c^y   +   CgZ   =    c^ 

dependent  upon  the  already  obtained  solution  of  two,  Scherk  put 
the  first  pair  of  equations  in  the  form 


=   ^    -    V  J, 


b^x    +   b^ 

solved  for  x  and  y ,  and  substituted  the  values  in  the  third  equation. 
Molins,  on  the  other  hand,  having  used  the  multipliers  m^ ,  m, , 
1 ,  with  the  equations  of  the  given  set,  performed  addition,  solved 
the  pair  of  equations 

m^a^  +   m^b^  -J-  c^  =  0 


^^a^  +   rn^b^  -J-  c^  =  0  | 
itts  +  mj6g  +   Cg  =  0  J 


for  m^  and  mg ,  and  substituted  the  obtained  values  in  the  result 
His  exposition  is  laboured  and  uninviting. 


Boole,  G.  (1843). 

[On  the  transformation  of  multiple  integrals.     Cambridge  Math, 
Joum.,  iv.  pp.  20-28.] 

Boole  had  to  use  in  his  paper  the  resultant  of  a  system  of  n 
linear  homogeneous  equations,  and  he  therefore  thought  proper,  by 
way  of  introduction,  to  state  a  mode  of  forming  the  resultant,  and 


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1908-4.]  Dr  Muir  on  Oeneral  Determinants,  75 

to  prove  that  the  result  was  correct.  As  the  mode  is  that  in  which 
the  rule  of  signs  is  dependent  on  the  number  of  interchanges,*  or, 
as  Boole  calls  them,  ''binary  permutations,''  any  interest  attaching 
to  the  little  exposition  is  connected  with  the  '*  proof."  The  first 
essential  paragraph  is : — 

"The  result  of  the  elimination  of  the  variables  from  the 
equations 

Oia?!  +  agar  J  +  •  •  •  +  a^n  =  0 , 
Ml  +  ^a^  + +  *«^  ^  ^  y 


is  an  equation  of  which  the  second  member  is  0,  and  of 
which  the  first  member  is  formed  from  the  coefficient  of 
x^x^-  •  •  a;^  in  the  product  of  the  given  equations,  by  assum- 
ing a  particular  term,  as  a^^' '  *^n  >  positive,  and  applying  to 
every  other  term  a  change  of  sign  for  every  binary  permutation 
which  it  may  exhibit,  when  compared  with  the  proposed 
term  ai&2' '  '^n  • 

The  curious  point  worth  noting  here  is  that  we  are  directed  first 

to    form    the    terms   of  the  expression  afterwards  denoted   by 

+  + 

I  Oj  ftg  •  •  •  r^  I  and  called  a  "  permanent,"  and  then  to  alter  the 

signs  of  certain  terms  of  it.     Boole  then  proceeds : — 

"  The  truth  of  the  above  theorem  is  shown  by  the  following 
considerations.  The  elimination  of  o^  from  the  first  and 
second  equation  of  the  system  introduces  terms  of  the  form 
ai62-«2^i>  ^^s-^^u  etc.,  in  which  the  law  of  binary 
permutation  is  apparent,  and  as  we  may  begin  the  process  of 
elimination  with  any  variable  and  with  any  pair  of  equations, 
the  law  is  universal.  From  the  same  instance  it  is  evident 
that  no  proposed  suffix  can  occur  twice  in  a  given  term, 
which  condition  is  also  characteristic  of  the  coefficient  of 
x^x^ -  -  >Xn  in  the  product  of  the  equations  of  the  system, 
whence  the  theorem  is  manifest." 

*  See  Rothe's  paper  of  the  year  1800. 


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76 


Proceedings  of  Boyal  Society  of  Edinburgh. 


L» 


It  will  be  observed  that  neither  the  word  "  detenninant "  nor 
the  word  "resultant'*  occiirs:  indeed,  throughout  the  paper, 
instead  of  resultant  he  uses  **  final  derivative,"  a  term  which  prob- 
ably may  be  traced  to  Sylvester.* 


Catlby  (1843). 

[Chapters  in  the  analytical  geometry  of  n  dimensions.  Cam- 
bridge Math,  Joum.^  iv.  pp.  119-127  ;  or  Collected  Math, 
Papers^  i.  pp.  55-62,] 

Of  the  four  short  chapters  which  compose  this  paper,  the  only 
one  which  concerns  us  is  the  first,  although  in  the  others  deter- 
minants are  constantly  made  use  of.  At  the  outset  an  important 
notation  is  introduced  which  afterwards  came  to  be  generally 
adopted.     The  passage  in  regard  to  it  is  : — 

"  Consider  the  series  of  terms — 


Kj        Kg 


X 


Kn, 


the    number    of    quantities    A  ,  .  ,  .  ,  K   being  equal   to 

q  {q<n).      Suppose  g  +  1    vertical   rows  selected,  and  the 

quantities  contained  in   them  formed  into  a  determinant, 

,      ,         .     »  (w-1)  •  •  •  (7  +  2)    ,.^ 
this  may  be  done  m    ,     ^y — - — .    _        ..  v    dmerent  ways. 

The  system  of  determinants  so  obtainexi  will  be  represented 
by  the  notation 


1  .r. 


K^        Kg 


K„ 


I; 


*  See  Sylvester's  paper  of  1840. 


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1903-4.] 


Dr  Muir  on  General  Detei^minants. 


77 


and  the  system  of  equations,  obtained  by  equating  each  of 
these  determinants  to  zero,  by  the  notation 


(3) 


K» 


A, 


A.'! 


.0." 


K»il 


A  theorem  is  next  enunciated  in  regard  to  the  expression  of 
any  one  of  the  determinants  in  terms  of  n  -  g  of  them. 

"The    }    a    — r~z 1^     equations  represented  by  this 

formula  reduce  themselves  to  n  —  q  independent  equations. 
Imagine  these  expressed  by 

(1)  =  0,    (2)  =  0,     .....    in-q)^0, 

any  one  of  the  determinants  is  reducible  to  the  form 

®i(l)  +  ®s(2)  +  •  •  •  +  ®n-,(n-!?) 

where  0^  ,  0^  ,  .  .  .  ,  0n-«  ^^  coefficients    independent 
ofa^,X2,  .  .  .  ,  a;„." 

No  proof  is  given. 

The  introduction  of  the  notation  is  fully  justified  by  two 
theorems  which  follow.  The  first  is  virtually  to  the  effect  that 
we  may  multiply  both  sides  of  (3)  by  the  determinant 


(5) 


K 


just  as  if  (3)  were  a  single  equation  instead  of  C„,g+i  equations, 
and  as  if  the  left-hand  side  were  a  determinant ;  and  the  result, 
written  in  the  form 


(6) 


;iiKi  +  . .  .  +  A,K,,       ^iKi  +  . .  .+/A,K^ 


T1A1  +  . 


•  +  ^«A,. 


•-Ht„K, 


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78  Proceedings  of  Boyal  Society  of  EdiTiburgh,         [i 

will  be  true;  that  is  to  say,  we  shall  have  a  new  set  of 
^n.ff+i  equations,  which  follows  logically  from  the  original  set. 
Further,  and  conversely,  if  the  set  (6)  hold,  we  can  deduce  the 
set  (3)  provided  that  the  determinant  (5)  be  not  zero.  The  other 
theorem  is  quite  similar,  being  to  the  effect  that  the  equations 
(3)  may  be  replaced  by  the  set 

and  that  conversely  from  the  set  (8)  the  set  (3)  is  deducible 
provided  the  determinant 

;  Xj      ftj     •  .  .     CD 

Xj  /ij        •     •     •        CD 


be  not  zero. 

As  the  "  derivation  of  coexistence  "  came  prominently  before  us 
in  examining  Sylvester's  early  work,  it  may  be  noted  here  in 
passing  that  Cayley's  second  chapter,  extending  to  about  a  page, 
consists  of  the  enunciation  of  a  theorem  on  this  subject. 

Caylky  (1843). 

[On  the  theory  of  determinants.  Trans.  Cambridge  PhUosph. 
SoCj  viii.  pp.  1-16;  or  Collected  Math,  Papers,  i.  pp. 
63-79.] 

Up  to  this  point  Cayley  had  dealt  with  determinants,  only,  as  it 
were,  incidentally.  Now,  however,  he  devotes  a  memoir  of  sixteen 
quarto  pages  to  the  study  of  them. 

The  introductory  page  shows  a  pretty  wide  acquaintance  with 
previous  writings  on  the  subject,  the  authors  mentioned  being 
Cramer,  Bezout  (1764),  Laplace,  Vandermonde,  Lj^range,*  Bezout 

*  As  the  memoir  of  Lagrange  which  Cayley  refers  to  is  not  one  of  those 
brought  into  notice  in  the  early  part  of  our  history,  but  is  one  bearing  the 
title  "  Sur  le  probUme  de  la  determination  des  orbites  des  cometes  d^apr^  trois 


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1908-4.] 


Dr  Muir  on  General  Determmants. 


79 


(1779),  Gauss,  Binet,  Cauchy  (1812),  Lebesgue,  Jacobi  (1841),  and 
Cauchy  (1841). 

The  first  aectiou  of  the  paper  is  said  to  deal  with  'Hhe  pro- 
perties of  determinants  considered  as  derivational  ftmctiona"  As 
a  matter  of  fact,  however,  a  close  examination  shows  that  the 
fimctions  whose  properties  are  investigated  are  not  strictly  deter- 
minants, but  belong  to  a  class  afterwards  named  bipartites  by 
Cayley  himself.  It  is  true  that  it  is  the  determinant  notation 
which  is  employed  in  specifying  the  functions,  but  this  is  due  to 
the  fact  that  the  bipartite  under  discussion  is  of  a  very  special 
type,  and  so  happens  to  be  expressible  as  a  determinant. 

The  function  U  from  which  he  considers  his  three  determinants 
to  be  **  derived  **  is 

a:(a^  +  )8i7  +  . . . .      ) 

+  x\ai  +  jS'iy  + ) 

+ 


there  being  n  lines  and  n  terms  in  each  line.     This  at  a  somewhat 
later  date  (1855)  he  would  have  denoted  by 


( 

o  fi  .... 
d  fi  .... 

[i,v 

,...$« 

and  called  a  bipartite.    A  still  later  notation  is 

i  V  ••.. 

a    fi    .... 
a    fi  .... 

X 

x' 

• 

from  which  each   term  of  the  final   expansion  is  very  readily 

observations,"  it  may  be  well  to  mention  that  the  substance  of  the  only 
sentence  in  it  which  concerns  us  had  already  appeared  in  the  memoir  of  1773. 
The  sentence  is 

"  De  1&  il  s'ensnit  aussi  qu'on  anra 

{tTu'  -  fuy  =  (a^z'  -  Tfsry'  +  (/«'  -  yV)^  +  iafy'  -  xY)\ 

— Ncvx,  JfAn.  dA  VAcad,  Roy (Berlin)^  ann.  1778,  p.  160. 


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80 


Proceedings  of  Boyal  Society  of  Sdinhirgh. 


[' 


obtained  by  multiplying  an  element^  jS'  say,  of  the  square  array  by 
the  two  elements  (i;,  x')  which  lie  in  the  same  row  and  column 
with  it  but  outside  the  array.  The  three  determinants  which  are 
viewed  as  "  derivational  functions  "  of  this  function  U  are 


a   p    .... 
a'  ^  .... 

R^  +  Si;  +  . . 
R'f  +  S'l;  +  . . 

Aa;  +  A  V  +  . . . 
a 
a 

Bx+Vx'  + 

and 


1  A'f  +  B'v  + 


Rx  +  RV  +  . . .     S«  +  Sy  + 


These  are  denoted  by  KU,  FU,  lU;  and  the  closing  sentence  of 
the  introduction  is,  "The  symbols  K,  F,  1  possess  properties 
which  it  is  the  object  of  this  section  to  investigate." 

KU,  it  will  be  observed,  is  what  afterwards  came  to  be  called 
the  discriminant  of  U;  and  FU,  lU  are  the  results  of  making 
certain  linear  substitutions  for  the  elements  of  the  first  row  and  of 
the  first  column  of  the  determinant 


X 

y 

z 

1 

a 

P 

y 

v 

1 
a 

^ 

y 

i 

It 
a 

pr 

n 

y 

It  is  this  determinant,  therefore,  which  is  under  investigation  and 
under  comparison  with  U.  That  it  is  a  bipartite  function  of 
Xf  y,  z, , , .  and  f ,  1;,  £, . . .  is  manifest  when  we  think  of  expanding 
it  according  to  binary  products  of  the  elements  of  the  first  row  and 
of  the   first  column,    the   expression   for   it  in  the   notation   of 


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i»03-4.]  Dy  Muir  on  General  Determinants. 

bipartites  being  thus  seen  to  be 

X  y  z 


81 


-1^7' •  • 

1     lay--- 

1    -la'r-.-l        ---- 

1^/... 

1    -lay"... 

1        |«)8"...|        .... 

-\H--- 

1       ky... 

1    -|a;8'...|       .... 

X 

y 

z           .... 

«1 

Oj 

Og        .... 

*1 

h 

\       .... 

<=! 

H 

c,          .... 

IXow  the  properties  of  this  which  are  investigated  by  Cayley  are 
properties  possessed  by  the  more  general  bipartite 


which  is  not  expressible  in  the  form  of  a  determinant.  So  far, 
therefore,  as  this  section  of  the  memoir  is  concerned,  it  is  evident 
that  the  title  is  somewhat  misleading,  and  it  is  unnecessary  to  enter 
into  detail  regarding  the  properties  in  question. 

In  the  course  of  the  section,  however,  having  occasion  to  use 
Jacobi's  theorem  regarding  a  minor  of  the  adjugate,  Cayley  gives 
at  the  outset  a  formal  proof  which  it  is  most  important  to  note,  as 
it  is  the  natural  generalisation  of  Cauchy's  proof  for  the  ultimate 
case,  and  consequently  has  since  become  the  standard  proof  given 
in  text-books.     The  passage  is 


"  Let  A , 

B, 

....,A', 

A=         ff 

y    •  •  . 

r 

y    •  •  • 

A'  =  ± 

i8" 

y"  •  •  • 

r 

y"  •  •  • 

be  given  by  the  equations 


B  = 


B  = 


± 

y   8'  ... 
y  8"  .  .  . 

y  8"  .  .  . 
y  8"'  .  .  . 

the  upper  or  lower  signs  being  taken  according  as  n  is  odd  or 
even. 
PROC.  ROY.  SOC.  EDIN. — VOL.  XXV.  6 


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82  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh,  [s 

These  quantities  satisfy  the  double  series  of  equations 


Aa  +  BjS  +....  =  K 
Aa  +  Bj3'  +....    =    0 

A'a  +  B'j3  +....  =  0 
AV+  B'^+   .   .  .  .    =    *c 

Aa  +  A'a  +....  =  « 
A^  +    k'ji'  +....=  0 

Ba  +  W'a  +....  =  0 
B/^  +    B'fi   +....    =     *c 

(6) 


the  second  side  of  each  equation  being  0,  except  for  the  /*"* 
equation  of  the  r*^  set  of  equations  in  the  systems. 

Let  X ,  fi ,  . .  represent  the  r^  ^{r  +  1)^ ,  . . .  terms  of  the 
series  a ,  )3 , . . .  ;  L ,  M  , . . . .  the  corresponding  terms  of 
the  series  A  ,  B ,  . . .  ,  where  r  is  any  number  less  than  n  , 
and  consider  the  determinant 

A  , ,  L 


A''--^^ 


L(r-l) 


which  may  be  expressed  as  a  determinant  of  the  n^  order,  in 
the  form 


A  ,  .  . 

.  .  ,  L      ,0 

0,  .  .  . 

A"-\  .  . 

.  .  ,  L'-",  0 

,0,  .  .  . 

0       ,  .  . 

...  0       ,1 

,0,  .  .  . 

0       ,.. 

..,  (.      ,0 

1 , . . . 

Multiplying  this  by  the  two  sides  of  the  equation 

«       =     1      a     ,    /i     ,      .   .   .      I 
I      a     ,    /i'    ,      ... 


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1903-4.] 


Dr  Muir  on  General  Detei*minants. 


83 


and  reducing  the  result  by  the  equation  (©)  and  the  equations 
(6) ,  the  second  side  becomes 


wh 

K       0    .   . 

Ok.. 

1 

*  • 

0       0      .  .  . 

fl^*"'       v<*">     .    .    . 

ich  is  equivalent  to 

K 

0 
0 

l/*-*     .... 

or 

we  have  the  equation 
A      L 

^C-l) JJ''-'^^ 

= 

K*--* 

»(r+l)    ylr+1) 

which  in  the  particular  case  of  r  =  n  becomes 

A     ....     B 
A'    .  .  .  .     B' 


The  Second  Section  is  said  to  concern  "  the  notation  and  pro- 
perties of  certain  functions  resolvable  into  a  series  of  determinants," 
and  it  is  at  once  seen  that  the  functions  in  question  are  obtainable 
from  the  use  of  m  sets  of  ?/  indices  in  the  way  in  which  a  deter- 
minant is  obtainable  from  only  two  sets.  Sylvester  spoke  of  them 
later  (1851)  as  commutants.* 

Caylby  (1845). 

[On  the  theory  of  linear  transformations.  Camh.  Math. 
Joum.,  iv.  pp.  193-209;  or  Collected  Math.  Papers,  i. 
pp.  80-94.] 

*  See  Postscript  to  Cay  ley's  paper  "  On  the  Theory  of  Permutauts,"  Cainh. 
and  Dub.  Math.  Joum.^  vii  pp.  40-61  ;  or  Collected  Math.  Papers^  ii. 
pp.  16-2(?. 


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84  Proceedings  of  Eoyal  Society  of  Edinhurgh.  [siss. 

[M^moire  sur  les    hyperd^terminants.      Crelle^s  Joum^  xxx. 

pp.  1-37.]* 
[On  linear  transformations.     Gamb,  and  Dub.  Math,  Joum,, 

i.  pp.   104-122;  or   Collected  Math.  Papers^  i.  pp.  95- 

112.] 

These  memoirs,  afterwards  so  famous  in  the  history  of  what  is 
now  known  as  the  algebra  of  quantics,  contain  exceedingly  little 
on  determinants.  It  is  important,  however,  to  direct  attention  to 
them,  because  the  basis  of  them  is  a  generalisation  of  determinants. 
Using  language  which  came  into  vogue  two  or  three  years  later, 
we  may  say  that  just  as  the  idea  and  notation  of  determinants 
provided  the  means  of  expressing  one  of  the  invariants  (viz.,  the 
discriminant)  of  a  function,  the  idea  and  notation  of  hyper- 
determinants  were  brought  forward  for  the  purpose  of  expressing 
all  the  invariants.!  The  generalisation  is  of  great  width,  hyper- 
determinants  including  as  a  very  special  case  the  generalisation 
previously  made,  viz.,  comrmUants. 

The  first  memoir  gives  incidentally  a  more  general  mode  of 
using  what  we  may  call  the  notation  of  multiple  determinants  than 
that  specified  in  his  paper  of  1843.  The  first  usage,  it  will  be 
remembered,  is  exemplified  by 


\       h^       b^ 


which  is  meant  to  signify  that 


"l 

«2 

«i 

«8 

«1 

«4 

«2 

=    1 

«S 

«2 

«4 

«» 

«4 

*1 

6, 

''. 

^8 

^1 

h 

'^2 

b» 

t>. 

h 

^3 

b. 

=  0. 


A  corresponding  example  of  the  new  usage  is 


a^    a.f    Og    a^ 
^1     ^2     ^8     h 


Xj      X.2     iCg      x^ 

Vi    Va    Vz    Va 


*  This  is  stated  to  be  a  translation  of  the  preceding  paper,  with  certain 
additions  by  the  author ;  and  as  such  it  is  not  reprinted  in  Collected  McUh, 
Papers.  It  also  contains  the  substance  of  the  paper  which  follows,  the  latter 
having  been  delayed  in  publication. 

t  And  indeed  the  covariants  also. 


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190S-4.] 


Dr  Muir  on  General  DetemiinarUs. 


85 


where  six  equations  are  again  intended  to  be  specified,  viz., 


a,    Oj 


as,    arj 


*1     *2   I      I  ^1     Vi  1. 


each  determinant  of  the  one  group  of  six  being  meant  to  be  equal 
to  the  corresponding  determinant  of  the  other  group. 

The  example  actually  employed  by  Cayley  is  a  result  of  the 
multiplication-theorem,  and  fully  justifies  the  usage.     It  is 


Xa+\'a'+...,A^  +  A'j8'  +  - 
'  lJia  +  iia'  +  -'-,ixfi  +  ii.'P^  +  - 


X>' 


where,  of  course,  the  number  of  columns  in  the  multiplier  must 
be  greater  than  the  number  in  the  determinant  which  is  its 
cofactor. 

It  may  be  worth  adding  that  the  MSmoire  mr  les  hyper- 
dMerminards  affords  the  first  instance  of  the  occurrence  of  Cayley's 
vertical-line  notation  in  GreU^s  Journal.* 


Db  F^rubsac  (1846). 

[Sur  la  r^lution  d'un  syst^me  g6n^ral  de  m  Equations  du 
premier  degr^  entre  m  inconnues.  Nouv,  Annales  de 
Math.,  iv.  pp.  28-32.] 

This  is  a  belated  contribution,  having  no  connection  with  any 
of  those  immediately  preceding  it.  The  author  in  all  probability 
knew  nothing  of  the  subject,  with  the  exception  of  Cramer's  rule, 
which  by  this  time  was  almost  a  century  old. 

The  theorem  which  he  seeks  to  establish  is : — 

*'Connaissant  les  valeurs  des  inconnues  d'un  syst^me  de  n 
equations  k  n  inconnues,  pour  avoir  le  d^nominateur  commun 
des  valeurs  d'un  syst^me  de  n  + 1  Equations  kn-\-\  inconnues, 
on  multiplie  le  d^nominateur  du  valeur  du  premier  syst^me, 
par  le  coefficient  de  la  nouvelle  inconnue  dans  la  nouvelle 
^nation.     Puis  on  en  retranche  les  produits  respectifs  des 

*  In  JAouvUle^B  JoumcU  brackets,  [  ]  or  {  },  were  used  in  Cayley's  own 
papers  of  the  year  1845.     See  vol.  z. 


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86  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh.  [sess. 

numerateurs  des  n  inconnues  du  premier  syst^me  par  leurs 
coefficients,  dans  la  demi^re  du  nouveau  systeme.  Quant  au 
num^rateur  il  se  forme  toujours  du  d^nominateur  en  rempla^ant 
le  coefficient  de  Finconnue  que  Ton  consid^re  par  le  terme 
tout  connu." 

The  method  of  proof  is  that  known  as  "  mathematical  induction.'* 
The  details  of  it  need  not  be  given,  as  they  correspond  closely 
with  what  are  to  be  found  in  Scherk's  paper  of  the  year  1825,  the 
main  differences  being  that  F^russac  uses  no  special  determinant 
notation,  and,  while  clear  and  simple,  is  not  nearly  so  lengthy  nor 
so  laboriously  logical. 


Tbrqukm  (1846). 

[Notice  sur  T^limination.      Nouv,   Anncdes  de  Afafh,^  v.    pp. 
153-162.] 

This  is  a  continuation  of  Terquem's  paper  of  the  year  1842. 
Just  as  the  previous  portion  dealt  with  Cramer  and  Bezout,  this 
deals  with  Fontaine  (des  Berlins),  Vandermonde,  and  Laplace, 
explaining  concisely  and  clearly  their  main  contributions  to  the 
subject. 

The  only  portion  of  it  calling  for  notice  is  that  in  which 
attention  is  drawn  to  the  curious  fact  that  Laplace  makes  no 
reference  to  Vandermonde's  paper  read  to  the  Academy  in  the 
preceding  year.     In  regard  to  this  Terquem's  remark  is — 

"II  est  extr^mement  probable  que  Laplace  n'a  pas  pris 
connaissance  du  m^moire  de  son  confrere :  on  sait,  d'ailleurs, 
que  les  analystes  fran9ais  lisent  peu  les  ouvrages  les  uns  des 
autres.  Ceci  nous  explique  ^galement  comment  la  r^lution 
de  r^quation  du  onzi6me  degr^  k  deux  termes,  la  plus  impor- 
tante  d^couverte  de  Vandermonde,  soit  rest^e  ignorde  jusqu'ii 
ce  qu'elle  ait  attir^  Tattention  de  Lagrange,  apr^  la  d^couverte 
similaire  de  M.  Gauss." 

Not  only,  however,  does  this  explanation  not  carry  us  far,  but 
the  question  arises  whether  the  point  sought  to  be  explained  is 
really   the  point  which  stands  most  in    need    of    explanation. 


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1903-4.]  Dr  Muir  on  General  Deteiininants.  87 

Vandennonde's  paper  was  read  at  the  very  beginning  of  1771  and 
Laplace's  in  1772:  yet  in  the  History  of  the  Academy  for  the 
latter  year  Laplace's  occupies  pp.  267-376  and  Vandermonde's 
pp.  516-532,  and  neither  refers  to  the  other's  work. 

It  may  be  noted  here  that,  notwithstanding  Terquem's  knowledge 
of  the  early  history  of  determinants  and  his  manifest  desire  to 
induce  his  readers  to  take  up  the  subject,  he  does  not  himself  hold 
the  new  weapon  with  a  very  firm  grasp.  For  example,  in  giving 
in  this  volume  an  account  of  a  paper  of  Grunert's  in  Crelle'e 
Journal,  viii.  pp.  153-159,  in  which  the  author  says— 


"  Entwickeln  ^ 

wir  nemlich  x'. 

!/',z',  (lurch  Elimination 

aus 

den  Gleichungen 

ar  =  Ax'+  By 
y  =  AV+BV 

+  Cz', 

'  +  cv, 

2  =  AV+  liV+CV, 

so  erhalten  wir : 

(B'C--I 

\"C')x  +  (B-C  - 

B(r)y  + 

(BC- 

B'C)2 

•C    ^ 

L 

» 

y'  = 

«'  = 

wenn  wir 

. 

L  =  AB'C-  A'BCr+  A'BC-  AB''C'+  A'B"C  -  A'B'C 

setzen  " — 

he  paraphrases  the  passage  as  follows  : — 
'*  Les  Equations  donnent 

,      x[B^(r|  +  y[l^G\  +  e[BC'] 


y 

z' 


oil  les  crochets  repr^entent  des  bindmes  altemSs ; 

[B'Cr]  =  B'C"-  B'C, 
et    ainsi    des    autres:     L    est    la   resultante,   d^nominateur 


commun. 


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88  Proceedings  of  Ruycd  Society  of  Edinburgh.  [siss. 

The  •imultaueous  use  of  bindme  alteme  and  rSmdiante  is  far 
from  happy.* 

Catalan  (1846). 

[Recherches  sur  les  de^terminants.     Bvlh  de  VAcad.  ray,   ...   de 

Belgique^  xiii  pp.  534-565.] 
As  is  known,  Catalan  had  already  dealt  with  determinants  in 
the  year  1839  in  a  memoir  regarding  the  change  of  variables  in  a 
multiple  integral  In  the  paper  which  we  have  now  come  to  be 
leads  up  to  examples  of  the  same  kind  of  transformation ;  but  the 
greater  part  of  it — seventeen  out  of  the  total  twenty-two  pages — 
is  occupied  with  determinants  pure  and  simple.  Half  of  this 
amount  consists  of  an  elementary  exposition  of  known  properties, 
and  calls  for  no  remark  save  that  what  Cauchy  called  ''produit 
principal "  or  "  terme  indicatif  ^*  is  here  called  '*  terme  carac- 
teristique/'  and  that  he  makes  constant  use  of  the  symbolism 

d6t.(A,  B,  C,  . . .  ) 
to  stand  for  the  determinant  whose  first  row  consists  of  a\  second 
row  of  h\  and  so  on :  for  example, 

d^t.(B,  A,  C, . . .  )  =  -  det.(A,  B,  C,  . . .  ) , 

d^t.(A,  A,  C, . . .  )  =  0, 

d^t.(A  +  M,  B)       =  d^t.(A,  B)  +  d^t.(M,  B) , 


When  we  come  to  §  13,  however,  we  find  fresh  ground  struck. 
The  exact  words  are : — 

"  Supposons  maintenant  qu^^tant  donn6  le  syst^me — 
A, 


A,, 


(A) 


♦  Two  years  later  we  find  him,  in  referring  to  a  paper  of  Cayley's  where  the 
determinant  '  L    T    S    ^ 

T    M    R    i; 

S     R    N    f 

I     U     f 

occurs,  calling  it  a  '*  fonction  cramerienne,"  and  writing  it 

r  L    T    S    I   A 

I   T    M   R    7,   I 

I   S    R    N    C   ( 

^  ^    n    C        ^' 


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1908-4.]  Dr  Muir  on  General  Determinants,  89 

dont  le  determinant  est  A  ,  on  ait  combine  par  voie  d'addition 
et  de  soustraction  lea  ^nations  dont  les  premiers  membres 
sont  repr^sent^  par  A^ ,  A^  ,....,  An ;  et,  par  exemple, 
qu'on  ait  d^duit  du  syst^me  (A)  le  systeme  suivant 

Ai  +  Aa  +  .  .  .  +  Ky\ 
Aj  —  Ag  , 
A,  -  A, .  }  (B) 

An_i  —  An 

dont  la  consideration  nous  sera  utile  plus  loin.  Soit  A'  le 
determinant  de  ce  nouveau  systeme:  d'apr^  les  n**  (3)  et 
(4),  nous  aurons 

A'=  det.  (Aj  ,  -  Ag  ,  -  A3  ,  .  .  .  ,  -  A„) 

+  det.  (Aj ,  Ag  ,  —  A3  ,   -  A4  ,...,  —  An) 
+  det.  (Aj  ,  Ag  ,  A3  -  A4  ,  .  .  .  ,  -  An) 

+ 

+  det.  (An  ,  Aj  ,  A  2  ,  .  .  .  ,  An_i) . 

On  sait  que  si  Ton  change  les  signes  des  termes  d'une  colonne 
horizontale,  le  determinant  change  de  signe ;  done 

A'  =  (-1)-^  det.  (Ai ,  A2 , . . . ,  An)   +   (-l)«-«  det.  (A2 ,  Aj ,  A3 , . . . ,  An) 

+   (-l)"-»det.  (A8,Ai,A2,A4,...,A„)  + 

+   (-det.(A„  i,Ai,A2,...,A„_2,An)  +  det.(An,Ai,A2,...,A„-i). 

Dans  la  premiere  parenth^se,  il  n'y  a  pas  d'in version ;  dans  la 
seconde,  il  y  a  une  inversion,  etc. ;  done 

A'  =  (-l)«-^w  A." 

The  theorem  thus  reached  may  be  enunciated  as  follows : — 1/ 
from  a  determinant  A  of  the  n**  order,  we  form  another  A'  such  that 
the  first  row  of  ^'  is  the  sum  of  all  the  rotes  of  A  and  every  other 
row  of  ^'  is  got  by  suhtracting  the  corresponding  row  of  A  from  the 
row  preceding  it  in  A,  then 

A'  =  (-l)«-in  A. 


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90  Proceediivjs  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh.  [s 

In  Catalan's  notation  it  is 

d^t.  (Ai  +  A2  +  . . .  +  A, ,  Aj  -  A.^ ,  A2  -  A3 , . . . ,  A,_i  -  A,) 
=   (-l)"-^n.d(5t.  (A,,A2,...,A.), 

although,  strange  to  say,  it  is  never  so  formulated  by  him. 
A  generalisation  of  it  is  next  given  by  saying  : — 

"Si  la  premiere  ligne  du  syst^me  (B)  avait  renferme 
seulement  p  des  quantites  A^  ,  A^  ,  .  .  .  ,  A^  ,  nous  aurions 
trouv^,  pour  la  determinant  de  ce  syst^me, 

A'  =  (-!)">  A," 

and  then  there  follow  a  number  of  applications  to  the  evaluatioD 
of  certain  special  determinants. 

Thus,  to  take  the  simplest  example,  having 

A   =      1      .      .      .      =    1 
.      1      .      . 


the  theorem  gives 

1 

1 

1 

1 

1 

1 

-1 

1 

-1 

1 

-1 

=  (  -  1)M  A   =    -  4  . 


The  other  illustrations  all  concern  determinants  of  the  special 
form  afterwards  known  as  "circulants  " ;  for  example,  C  (  -  1  ,  1  , 
l,...,l),C(-l,-l,l,l,...,l),etc.,C(l,l,...,l,0), 
C  (I  ,  1 ,  . . . ,  1,0,0),  etc.  They  therefore  fall  to  be  dealt 
with  in  a  different  place. 

Sarbus,  p.  F.  (1846). 

[Finck,    P.    J.    E.      Elements    d^Alg^bre.      Seconde    ^tioa. 
iv  +  544  pages.     Strasbourg.] 

In  the  course  of  his  discussion  of  the  solution  of  a  set  of  linear 
equations  with  three  unknowns,  the  author  interjects  the  following 
paragraph  (No.  52,  p.  95) : — 


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190:i-4.] 


Dr  Muir  oil  General  DetermiiuDUs, 


91 


"Pour  calculer,  dans  un  exemple  donn($,  les  valeurs  de  x,  // 
et  2,  M.  Sarrus  a  imaging  la  m^thode  pratique  suivante,  qui 
est  fort  ing^nieuse.  D'abord  on  pent  calculer  le  d^nomina- 
teur,  et  k  cet  efifet  on  ($crit  les  coefficients  des  inconnues  ainsi 

a     h     c 
a'    b'    c 

n      -lit        n 

a     h    c 

On  repute  les  trois  premiers  a     h    c 

et  les  trois  suivants  a     h'    c 

Actuellement  partant  de  a,  on  prend  diagonalement  du  haut 
en  has,  en  descendant  h,  la  fois  d'un  rang,  et  reculant  d'autant 
k  droite,  a  h'c  :  on  part  de  a'  de  m^me,  et  on  a  a  h'c  ;  de 
a  ,  et  on  trouve  ah c  ;  on  a  ainsi  les  trois  termes  positifs 
(c*est-k-dire  k  prendre  avec  leur  signes)  du  denominateur.  On 
commence  ensuite  par  c  et  descendant  de  m^rae  vers  la 
gauche  on  a  c h'a" ,  clfa ,  ch a  ,  ou  les  trois  termes  n^gatifs 
(ou  plutdt  les  termes  qu'il  faut  changer  de  signe)." 

This  **methode  pratique"  or  mnemonic  is  the  original  form  of 
the  so-called  "  r^le  de  Sarrus "  which  came  later  to  have  un- 
necessary prominence  given  to  it  by  writers  on  determinants  when 
ilealing  with  those  of  the  third  order* 

*  The  date  1883  has  been  assigned  to  this  '*  rule  *'  in  a  recent  German  text- 
book on  detenninants  (Weichold's) :  if  1833  be  the  correct  date  the  '*  rule  '* 
probably  will  be  fonnd  in  a  publication  by  Sarrus  entitled  Nouvelle  mdhode 
pour  la  r^lutian  dcs  iquatums^  which  appeared  at  Strasbourg  in  that  year. 


LIST  OF  AUTHORS 
whose  writings  are  herein  dealt  with. 


PAGE 

PAGB 

1748.  Fontaine 

.     61 

1843.  Cayley  . 

.     76 

1829.  Cauchy  . 

.     62 

1843.  Cayley  . 

.     78 

1829.  Jacobi 

.     63 

1846.  Cayley  . 

.     83 

1833.  Jacobi     . 

.     69 

1846.  De  FfiRUssAC  . 

.     86 

1834.  Jacobi     . 

.     72 

1846.  Terqukm 

.     86 

1839.  MoLiNs  . 

.     73 

1846.  Catalan 

.     88 

1843.  Boole     . 

.74 

1846.  Sarrus    . 

.     90 

(Issued  separately  February  12,  1904.) 


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92  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh.  [sbss. 


Man  as  Artist  and  Sportsman  in  the  Palaeolithic 
Period.  By  Robert  Munro,  M.A.,  M.D.,  LL.D.  (With 
Eleven  Plates.) 

(Ad  Address  deliyered  at  tlie  request  of  the  Coonci],  Not.  28,  1903.) 


I.  Introduction. 

So  long  as  Homo  sapiens  was  believed  to  occupy  a  higher 
platform  in  the  organic  world  than  other  animals  by  virtue  of 
his  special  endowments,  no  one,  apparently,  thought  of  looking 
for  evidence  of  his  origin  and  history  in  the  obscure  vista  of 
prehistoric  times.  The  long  cherished  traditions  and  myths 
which  had  gathered  around  the  inquiry  left  little  room  for  any 
other  hypothesis  than  that  his  apparition  on  the  field  of  life  was 
the  last  and  crowning  achievement  of  a  long  series  of  creative 
fiats  which  brought  the  present  world-drama  into  existence.  In 
the  cosmogony  thus  conjured  up,  the  multitudinous  phenomena 
of  the  material  world — animals  and  plants,  the  distribution  of 
land  and  water,  the  recurrence  of  seasons,  etc. — were  regarded  as 
having  been  specially  designed  and  arranged  to  administer  to  the 
life-functions  of  this  new  being. 

Nurtured  in  an  environment  so  full  of  legendary  romance,  we 
need  not  be  surprised  that  the  philosophic  schools  of  Britain,  as 
well  as  of  other  countries,  continued  to  teach  some  such  theory 
of  man's  origin  up  to  about  half  a  century  ago,  when  the  doctrine 
of  organic  evolution  captured  the  scientific  mind  of  the  day.  But, 
notwithstanding  the  far-reaching  significance  of  the  evolution 
theory,  the  evolutionary  stages  of  man's  career  on  the  globe 
remained  almost  as  great  a  mystery  as  before ;  for,  at  the  outset, 
the  new  doctrine  appeared  to  go  no  further  than  to  point  to  the 
direction  in  which  the  trail  of  humanity  was  to  be  looked  for. 
The  erect  attitude,  bipedal  locomotion,  true  hands,  and  a  unique 
handicraft  skill,  amply  difierentiated  him  from  all  other  animals. 
But  for  a  long  time  no  rational  explanation  of  how  he  acquired 
these  distinguishing  characteristics  was   forthcoming;   and,  even 


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1903-4.]     Dr  Munro  on  Man  in  the  Palceolithic  Period,         93 

now,  their  origin  and  development  are  among  the  most  obscure 
problems  within  the  whole  range  of  anthropology. 

In  the  address  which  I  had  the  honour  of  delivering  in  1893, 
as  president  of  the  Anthropological  Section  of  the  British  Associa- 
tion for  that  year,  I  advocated  the  hypothesis  that  the  origin  of 
the  higher  mental  manifestations  of  man  was  primarily  due  to 
the  attainment  of  the  erect  attitude,  which,  by  entirely  relieving 
the  fore-limbs  of  their  primary  function  as  locomotive  organs, 
afforded  him  the  opportunity  of  entering  on  a  new  phase  of 
existence,  in  which  intelligence  and  mechanical  skill  became  the 
governing  factors.  With  the  completion  of  the  morphological 
changes  involved  in  the  attainment  of  this  attitude,  the  evolution 
of  the  present  human  form,  with  the  exception  of  some  remark- 
able modifications  in  the  skull  and  facial  bones,  which  will  be 
subsequently  referred  to,  was  practically  completed.  As  soon  as 
bipedal  locomotion  became  habitual  and  firmly  secured  on  an 
anatomical  basis,  it  does  not  appear  that  the  osseous  characters  of 
the  lower  limbs  would  be  sensibly  affected  by  any  subsequent 
increase  in  the  quantity  or  quality  of  brain-matter.  For  example, 
the  function  of  the  femurs  being  henceforth  to  support  a  certain 
load,  i,e.  the  entire  weight  of  the  body,  it  would  not  influence 
them  in  the  least  whether  that  load  contained  the  brains  of  a 
fool  or  of  a  philosopher.  The  important  and  novel  element  which 
the  permanent  assumption  of  the  erect  posture  was  the  means  of 
introducing  on  the  field  of  human  life,  was  the  use  to  which  the 
eliminated  fore-limbs  were  put.  By  substituting,  for  nature's 
means  of  defence  and  self-preservation,  a  variety  of  implements, 
weapons  and  tools  made  with  their  own  hands,  the  subsequent 
well-being  of  these  novel  bipeds  became  dependent  on  their 
ability  to  interpret  and  utilise  the  laws  and  forces  of  nature. 
As  time  went  on  they  began  to  recognise  the  value  of  the  faculty 
of  reasoning  as  the  true  source  of  inventive  skill ;  and  hence  a 
premium  was  put  on  this  commodity.  In  this  way,  stimulants  to 
the  production  of  new  ideas  and  new  inventions  were  constantly 
coming  within  the  scope  of  their  daily  avocations,  the  result  of 
which  was  a  steady  increase  of  human  intelligence,  and  conse- 
quently of  brain  substance.  Now,  according  to  the  well- 
established  doctrine   of  the   localisation   of   brain  function,   the 


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94  Proceedings  of  Boyal  Society  of  Edinburgh.  [sess. 

additional  brain  molecules  and  cells  thus  acquired  had  their  seat 
of  growth  for  the  most  part  somewhere  in  the  cerebral  hemi- 
spheres which  lie  well  within  the  anterior  portion  of  the  brain- 
casing.  The  mere  mechanical  effect  of  this  increment  to  the 
physical  organ  of  thought  would  be  to  increase  the  weight  of  the 
anterior  half  of  the  head,  and  so  to  upset  its  finely  equipoised 
position  on  the  top  of  the  spinal  column.  But  as  any  interfer- 
ence with  the  free  and  easy  rotatory  movements  of  the  liead 
would  manifestly  be  disadvantageous  to  the  individual  in  the 
struggle  of  life,  it  became  necessary  to  counteract  the  influence 
of  this  disturbing  element  by  some  other  concurrent  morpho- 
logical process,  which  would  not  be  prejudicial  to  the  general 
well-being  of  the  human  economy.  This  object  was  partly 
attained  by  a  retrocession  or  contraction  of  the  facial  bones, 
especially  the  jaw  bones,  towards  the  central  axis  of  the  spinal 
column,  and  partly  by  a  backward  shifting  of  the  cerebrum  over 
the  cerebellum.  As  the  gradual  filling  up  of  the  cranial  cavity  pro- 
gressed necessarily  pari  passu  with  these  cerebral  modifications, 
we  have,  in  the  facial  angle  of  Camper,  a  rough  mechanical  means 
of  estimating  the  progress  of  mental  development  during  the 
period  of  man's  existence  as  a  human  being,  i.e.  since  he 
attained  the  erect  attitude. 

One  of  the  results  of  this  retrocession  of  the  facial  bones  was 
the  gradual  contraction  of  the  alveolar  borders  of  the  jaws,  thereby 
diminishing  the  space  allotted  to  the  teeth, — a  fact  which  plausibly 
accounts  for  some  of  the  peculiarities  which  differentiate  the  older 
fossil  jaws  from  modern  specimens.  Thus,  in  the  dentition  of  the 
former,  the  third  or  last  molar  is  the  largest,  whereas  in  the  latter 
it  is  the  smallest.  Not  only  so,  but  among  Neolithic  and  some 
European  races  of  to-day  these  four  molar  teeth  (wisdom)  make 
their  appearance  at  a  later  date  in  the  individual's  life  than  for- 
merly, so  that  they  seem  to  be  on  the  highway  to  become  vestigial 
organs.  It  is  interesting  to  note  that  the  shortening  of  the  dental 
portion  of  the  human  jaw  attracted  the  attention  of  Mr  Darwin, 
who,  however,  attributed  it  to  "  civilised  men  habitually  feeding 
on  soft,  cooked  food,  and  thus  using  their  jaws  less." 

Another  peculiarity  of  civilised  races  is  the  greater  prominence 
of  the  chin,  a  peculiarity  which  may  also  be  due  to  the  contraction 


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1903-4.]     Dr  Monro  on  Man  in  the  Pcdceolithic  Period,  95 

of  the  alveolar  ridges  and  the  consequent  more  upright  setting  of 
the  teeth  in  their  sockets.  But  whatever  the  precise  cause  may 
have  heen,  there  can  he  no  douht  that  the  gradual  formation  of 
the  chin  has  a  striking  parallelism  with  the  progressive  stages 
of  man's  intellectual  development,  ever  since  he  diverged  from  the 
common  stem  line  from  which  he  and  the  anthropoid  apes  have 
descended  (see  fig.  18). 

From  these  general  remarks  it  will  he  seen  that  there  are  two 
distinct  lines  on  which  investigations  into  the  past  history  of  man- 
kind may  be  profitably  conducted,  both  of  which  start  from  the 
attainment  of  the  erect  attitude.  The  evidential  materials  to  be 
gathered  from  these  different  sources  consist,  in  the  one  case,  of 
some  fragments  of  a  few  skeletons  of  former  races,  which,  by  some 
fortuitous  circumstances,  have  to  this  day  resisted  the  disintegrating 
forces  of  nature ;  and,  in  the  other,  of  a  number  of  specimens  of 
man's  handicraft  works,  which,  being  largely  made  of  such  en- 
durable substance  as  flint,  are  more  abundantly  met  with.  The 
successive  modifications  which  these  respective  materials  have 
undergone  during  a  long  series  of  ages,  though  different  in  kind, 
are  found  to  bear  a  decided  ratio  to  the  progress  of  human  intelli- 
gence. Thus,  taking  the  human  skull  at  the  starting-point  of 
humanity  as  comparable  to  that  of  one  of  the  higher  apes,  we 
know,  as  a  matter  of  fact,  that  during  the  onward  march  of  time 
it  has  undergone  some  striking  changes,  both  in  form  and  capacity, 
hcfore  reaching  the  normal  type  of  modem  civilised  races — changes 
which  can  be  largely  classified  in  chronological  sequence  (see  pp. 
99-108).  Similarly,  the  artificial  products  of  man's  hands  show 
a  steady  improvement  in  type,  technique,  and  efficiency,  commen- 
surate with  his  progressive  knowledge  of  the  laws  of  nature  and  his 
ability  in  applying  them  to  mechanical  and  utilitarian  purposes. 
Indeed,  the  trail  of  humanity  along  its  entire  course  is  strewn  with 
the  discarded  weapons  and  tools  which,  from  time  to  time,  had  to 
give  way  to  others  of  greater  efficiency.  Such  obsolete  objects  are 
now  only  collected  as  curiosities  to  be  preserved  in  archaeological 
museums  (see  pp.  109-117). 

The  main  object  of  these  preliminary  remarks  is  to  emphasise 
the  nature  and  true  significance  of  the  methods  by  which  anthro- 
pologists have   been   enabled   to   prosecute   their   researches   far 


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96  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  JEdinhirgh.  [sess. 

beyond  the  limits  of  the  historic  period.  Without  a  clear  notion 
of  the  logic  and  grounds  on  which  their  deductions  are  founded, 
it  would  be  impossible  to  enlist  the  attention  of  a  general  audience 
to  an  address  involving  data  so  different  from  those  of  ordinary 
scientific  worL 

The  special  subject  on  which  I  have  to  discourse  consists  of 
some  exceptionally  interesting  human  relics,  chiefly  belonging  to 
the  Later  Palaeolithic  period  in  Europe.  These  remains  have  been 
most  abundantly  found  among  the  culinary  d&nis  of  a  race  of 
hunters  who  inhabited  caves  and  rock-shelters  in  France,  Switzer- 
land, South  of  England,  and  other  parts  of  Europe.  Among  the 
more  remarkable  objects  collected  in  these  localities  are  representa- 
tions of  various  animals  carved,  and  sometimes  sculptured,  on 
pieces  of  ivory,  horn,  bone  and  stone.  As  illustrations  of  most 
of  these  artistic  productions  have  been  published,  I  am  enabled 
to  exhibit  some  of  the  more  characteristic  specimens  on  the  screen. 
But  before  doing  so,  there  is  one  question  which  I  had  better 
dispose  of  at  once,  viz.,  that  of  their  supposed  age,  because  the 
answer  is  itself  a  typical  object-lesson  of  the  resourceful  means 
by  which  anthropological  investigations  are  being  conducted. 

Whatever  views  may  be  held  as  to  the  anthropological  value  of 
the  famous  skull  of  Pithecanthropus  erectus  (figs.  4  and  5),  dis- 
covered some  ten  years  ago  by  M.  Dubois  in  the  Upper  Pliocene 
deposits  of  Java,  the  femur  (fig.  6)  found  in  the  same  stratum 
with  it  conclusively  proves  that  there  had  been  then  in  existence  a 
being  of  the  genus  Homo  which  had  assumed  the  erect  attitude  as 
its  normal  mode  of  locomotion — i.e.  at  a  time  prior  to  the  advent 
of  that  great  landmark  in  the  physical  history  of  the  northern 
hemisphere  known  as  the  glacial  period.  Now  it  was  only  towards 
the  end  of  that  period,  just  when  the  ice  sheet  and  its  great 
feeding  glaciers  were  creeping  back  to  their  primary  centres  of 
dispersion  in  the  mountainous  regions  of  Britain,  Central  Europe, 
and  Scandinavia,  that  the  European  troglodytes,  whose  antiquity 
is  now  suhjudice^  flourished.  Hence,  they  and  their  works  must 
be  assigned  to  an  intermediate  period  between  the  present  time 
and  the  starting-point  of  humanity.  As  the  first  part  of  this 
chronological  range  may  be  equated  with  nearly  the  whole  duration 
of  the  glacial  period,  the  task  of  converting  it  into  so  many  cen- 


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1903-4.]    Dr  Munro  on  Man  in  the  PcUceolithic  Period.  97 

turies  or  millenniums  may  be  left  in  the  bands  of  astronomers  and 
geologists,  wbo,  in  more  recent  times,  bave  appropriated  among 
them  tbe  solution  of  this  part  of  tbe  problem.  It  is  witb  the 
second  part  of  tbe  range,  viz.,  tbe  time  wbicb  bas  elapsed  since 
the  Palseolitbic  artists  and  hunters  lived,  that  we  are  now  chiefly 
concerned.  It  embraces  tbe  entire  duration  of  the  Historic,  Iron, 
Bronze  and  Neolithic  Ages,  together  with  an  interval  of  unknown 
length  between  tbe  Neolithic  and  Palseolithic  civilisations.  It  has 
long  been  supposed  that  during  this  obscure  interval  there  had 
been  a  hiatus  in  the  continuity  of  human  existence  in  Western 
Europe — an  idea  which,  however,  is  now  justly  discredited  in  face 
of  more  recent  discoveries,  throughout  the  same  geographical  area, 
of  transition  deposits  containing  human  relics.  Of  these  later 
discoveries  the  rock-shelter  of  Schweizersbild,  near  Schaflhausen, 
is  one  of  the  best  examples  known  to  me,  as  its  d^hria  indicates 
that  tbe  site  was  a  constant  rendezvous  for  bands  of  roving  hunters 
from  the  Palaeohthic  period  down  to  the  Bronze  Age.  Dr  Niiesch, 
its  explorer,  has  expressed  the  opinion,  founded  on  the  relative 
thickness  of  the  deposits  and  the  character  of  the  fauna  represented 
in  them,  that  the  antiquity  of  its  earliest  human  relics  cannot  be  less 
than  20,000  years.  Now,  since  the  art-remains  found  in  tbis  station 
and  in  tbe  adjacent  cave  of  Kesslerlocb  are  precisely  similar  to 
those  of  the  analogous  stations  in  France,  we  can  accept  the  above 
estimate  as  equally  applicable  to  the  latter.  The  nature  of  the  evi- 
dence on  which  Dr  Niiesch  founded  his  opinion  is  briefly  as  follows : — 

According  to  Professor  Nehring,  who  bas  made  a  special  study 
of  the  animals  now  inhabiting  tbe  arctic  and  sub-arctic  regions, 
those  characteristic  of  the  former  are  —  Band-lemming,  Obi- 
lemming,  arctic  fox,  mountain  bare,  reindeer  and  musk  -  ox. 
With  these  are  frequently  associated  a  number  of  animals  of 
migratory  habits,  such  as  northern  vole,  water  -  rat,  glutton, 
ermine,  little  weasel,  wolf,  fox  and  bear.  Now,  the  extraordinary 
fact  was  brought  out  that  of  these  fourteen  species  only  tbe  Obi- 
lemming  and  the  musk-ox  were  imrepresented  in  the  lowest 
relic-bed  of  tbe  Schweizersbild.  The  latter  was,  however,  found 
in  the  dShris  of  the  Kesslerlocb  cave  in  the  vicinity.  It  appears 
that  the  Band-lemming  (Myodes  torquatus)  and  the  arctic  fox 
are  the  most  persistent  animals  of  the  arctic  fauna,  so  that  the 

PBGC.  BOY.  SOC.  EDIN. — VOL.  XXV.  7 


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98  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinhtrgh.  [sbss. 

presence  of  the  bones  of  these  two  animals  in  the  debris  of 
this  rock  -  shelter  was  alone  suflficient  to  prove  that  the  climate 
of  the  period  was  of  an  arctic  character.  In  the  upper  portion 
of  this  deposit  relics  of  new  animals,  indicating  a  change  to  a 
sub  -  arctic  climate,  began  to  appear,  and  had  their  greatest 
development  in  the  next  succeeding  layer. 

The  result  of  careful  analysis  of  the  contents  of  the  other 
deposits  showed  that  this  arctic  fauna  became  ultimately  dis- 
placed by  the  true  forest  fauna  of  the  Neolithic  period.  Among 
the  newcomers  were  the  badger,  wild  cat,  hare,  UmSj  Bos  longi- 
frons^  goat  and  sheep;  while  of  those  represented  in  the  Palae- 
olithic deposit  a  large  number  was  absent.  Thus  both  the 
arctic  and  sub-arctic  fauna  had  given  way  to  a  forest  fauna, 
and,  synchronous  with  these  changes,  the  Palaeolithic  hunters 
and  reindeer  vanished  from  the  district. 

Among  the  few  art  specimens  found  at  the  Schweizersbild  is 
a  stone  tablet,  having  rude  outlines  of  a  wild  ass  and  of  a 
reindeer  incised  upon  it.  The  whole  collection,  among  which 
were  14,000  worked  flints,  180  fragments  of  bone  needles,  41 
whistles,  42  pierced  ornaments  made  of  shells  and  of  the  teeth 
of  the  arctic  fox,  glutton,  etc.,  is  typical  of  the  latest  phase  of 
Palaeolithic  civilisation  of  the  Dordogne  caves. 

The  chronological  deductions  founded  on  the  investigations  at 
the  Schweizersbild  are,  from  their  very  nature,  more  or  less 
hypothetical.  But,  after  all  allowances  for  possible  errors  are 
made,  I  can  see  no  objection  to  Dr  NUesch's  lowest  estimate  of 
the  date  of  man's  first  appearance  into  Northern  Switzerland, 
viz.,  20,000  years  ago.* 

I  now  proceed  to  exhibit  some  illustrations  selected  from  the 
evidential  materials  on  which  the  opinions  and  conclusions  ad- 
vocated in  this  address  are  founded.  The  slides  are  arranged 
in  two  series,  corresponding  to  the  two  lines  of  research  on 
which,  as  mentioned  in  the  preliminary  remarks,  anthropological 
investigations  are  most  usually  conducted.  Afterwards  I  will 
add  some  further  comments  on  the  phase  of  human  civilisation 
thus  so  singularly  resurrected  from  the  lumber-room  of  oblivion. 

•See  Neice  DenkschrifUn  der  allgemHncn  schweizerischen  Oesellschaft fiir 
die  gesainmUn  Natunrisscnschaflen^  vol.  xxxv. 


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1903-4.]     Dr  Munro  on  Man  in  the  Palceolithic  Fe7*iod.         99 


II.  Illustrations, 

The  following  illustrations  are  not  in  all  cases  reproductions  of  those 
exhibited  on  the  screen  when  the  address  was  deliyered,  as  it  was  im- 
practicable to  conyert  some  of  them  into  printing  blocks.  They  are,  how- 
ever, with  few  exceptions,  substantially  the  same,  only  grouped  differently, 
and  are  specially  selected  to  elucidate  the  various  points  touched  upon  in 
the  text.  The  remains  of  fossil  man  are,  as  yet,  too  meagre  to  afford  much 
choice  of  illustrative  materials ;  but  of  the  handiworks  of  the  artists  and 
hunters  of  the  Paleolithic  period  there  is  no  lack,  as,  indeed,  most  of  the 
principal  musetuns  of  the  world  contain  more  or  fewer  specimens  in  addition 
to  casts  of  the  most  remarkable  pieces.  Even  in  the  Scottish  metropolis, 
anyone  desirous  of  becomii^  conversant  vrith  their  characteristic  features 
has  only  to  visit  the  ethnological  department  of  either  the  Museum  of  Science 
and  Art  or  of  the  National  Museum  of  Antiquities.  The  literature  of  the 
subject  is  also  voluminous  and  much  of  it  readily  accessible,  among  which 
I  would  particularly  mention  the  recently  issued  Guide  to  the  Antiquities 
of  the  Stone  Age  in  the  British  Museum.  Owing  to  the  roundness  of  the 
beam  of  an  anUer,  on  which  these  engravings  are  generally  executed,  the 
whole  of  the  incised  outlines  of  an  animal  cannot  always  be  seen  from  one 
point  of  view,  and  hence  a  drawing  is  sometimes  more  effective  than  a 
photograph.  The  illustrations  here  supplied  are  the  result  of  a  combination 
of  all  available  sources— original  specimens,  casts,  photographs  and  drawings 
of  objects  not  at  hand  being  requisitioned  into  the  work. 


A. — Evidence  of  Progressive  Changes  in  tJie  Human  SkvlL 

Among  the  bodily  features  which  distinguish  man  from  other 
animals  the  following  are  particularly  worthy  of  note,  viz.,  the 
upright  attitude,  with  the  head  balanced  on  the  top  of  the  spinal 
column;  the  double  curvature  of  the  spine;  the  great  difference 
between  the  hands  and  feet;  the  power  of  firmly  opposing  the 
thumb  to  each  of  the  other  four  fingers ;  the  prominence  of  the 
frontal  bone;  and  the  almost  vertical  profile  of  the  face.  It 
may,  however,  be  observed  that,  as  regards  the  prominence  of 
the  forehead  and  degree  of  prognathism  of  the  facial  bones, 
some  strikmg  variations  occur  among  the  different  existing  races. 
To  show  the  extent  of  these  differences  I  reproduce,  from  Owen's 
Comparative  Anatomy  (vol.  ii.  pp.  558,  560),  figures  of  two  skulls, 
one  (figs.  1  and  2)  labelled  "Craniimi  of  a  native  Australian," 
and  the  other  (fig.  3)  "Skull  of  a  well-formed  European,"  from 
which  it  will  be  at  once  seen  that  the  former  has,  relatively,  a 
retreating  forehead  and  a  highly  prognathic  profile,  while  the 
latter  has  a  well-filled  forehead  and  an  orthognathic  face. 


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100  Proceediyujs  of  Royal  SocUty  of  Edinbiirgh.  [siss* 

The  next  step  in  the  argument  is  to  show  that  some  fossil 
skulls  possess,  to  a  more  or  less  degree,  the  features  of  the 
Australian  skull  —  the  degree  of  divergence  from  the  normal 
European  type  being  in  direct  proportion  to  their  antiquity. 
As  bearing  on  this  important  generalisation,  let  me,  in  the  first 


Figs.  1  and  2.  -  Front  and  side  views  of  the  skull  of  a  native 
Australian.     (After  Owen.) 

place,  refer  to  the  famous  calvaria  of  Pithecanthropus  erecttis 
(figs.  4  and  5),  discovered  (1891-2)  by  Dr  Dubois,  in  the 
detritus  of  a  Pliocene  river  in  Java,  which  shows  a  remarkably 
low  and  retreating  forehead.     In  the  absence  of  the  facial  bones 


Fio.  3. — Skull  of  a  well-foiined  European.     (After  Owen.) 

we  can  only  surmise  that  the  individual  which  originally  owned 
this  skull  presented  a  highly  prognathic  appearance,  approaching 
even  to  that  of  Hijlohates,  to  which  Dr  Dubois  compares  it. 
(See  Pith,  eredus,  Plate  I.,  1894.) 


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1903—4.]     Ik  MuTiTo  on  Man  in  the  PalceolUhw  Period,        101 

The  femur  (fig.  6)  discovered  by  Dr  Dubois  in  the  same  place 
has  been  pronounced  by  most  of  the  anatomists  who  had  criti- 
cally examined  it  to  be  human;  but,  as  it  lay  at  a  distance  of 
15  metres  from  the  calvaria,  there  is  no  absolute  certainty  that 
the  two  bones  belonged  to  the  same  individual.  There  can, 
liowever,   be  no  doubt  that  this  femur  was  that  of  an   animal 


Fio.  4. — Side  view. 


Fio.  6. — Top  view. 
The  skull  of  PUheeanthropus  erectus,  Java  (i).     (After  Dr  Dubois  ) 

which,  at  that  early  period,  had  attained  the  erect  attitude — 
an  animal  which  therefore  must  have  belonged  to  the  genus 
Homo,  The  logical  deduction  from  these  data  is  thus  necessarily 
limited  to  probability ;  but  if  the  hypothesis  of  organic  evolution 
be  correct,  the  Java  skull  is  precisely  in  that  stage  of  cranio- 
logical  development  which  would  be  expected  at  that  early  time 
in  the  history  of  humanity. 

The  skull  of  the  human  skeleton  discovered  in  1856  in  the 


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102  Proceedings  of  Boyal  Society  of  Edinburgh.  [( 

cave  of  Feldhoven,  situated  at  the  entrance  to  the  Neanderthal 
ravine,  on  the  right  bank  of  the  Diissel,  and  since  known  as 
the  'Neanderthal  skull/  presented  such  remarkable  peculiarities 
that,    when    first    exhibited    at  a  scientific    meeting    at  Bonn, 


Fig.  6. — Femur  of  Pithecanthropus  erectus^  found  in  Java  (J). 
(After  Dr  Dubois.) 

doubts  were  raised  by  several  naturalists  as  to  whether  the 
bones  were  really  human.  Figs,  7  and  8  represent  two  views  of 
this  relic,  outlined  from  figures  published  by  Professor  Huxley 
{Collected  Essays,  vol  vii.  p.  180),  from  which  its  characteristics, 
especially  the  low  retreating  forehead,  may  be  seen  at  a  glance. 
Writing  in  1863,  Professor  Huxley  made  the  following  remarks 


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1908-4.]     Dr  Munro  on  Man  in  the  Palceolithic  Period,        103 

on  the  Neanderthal  skull : — "  There  can  be  no  doubt  that,  as 
Professor  Schaaffhausen  and  Mr  Busk  have  stated,  this  skull 
is  the  most  brutal  of  all  known  human  skulls,  resembling  those 
of  the  apes  not  only  in  the  prodigious  development  of  the 
superciliary  prominences  and  the  forward  extension  of  the  orbits, 
but  still  more  in  the  depressed  form  of  the  brain-case,  in  the 


Fi«.  7.— Side  view. 


Fig.  8.— Top  view. 
The  Neanderthal  skull  (^).     (After  Huxley.) 

straightness  of  the  squamosal  suture,  and  in  the  complete  retreat 
of  the  occiput  forward  and  upward,  from  the  superior  occipital 
ridges." — (LyelFs  Antiquity  of  Man,  p.  84.) 

The  skull  (cephalic  index  70)  of  one  of  the  Spy  skeletons 
(figs.  9,  10  and  11)  also  shows  a  low  retreating  forehead,  marked 
prognathism,  a  sloping  chin,  and  large  third  molar  teeth.  These 
skeletons  were  discovered  in  1886,  buried  12^  feet  in  fallen 
debris  at  the  entrance  of  a  grotto  in   the  province   of  Namur, 


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104  Proceedings  of  Bayal  Society  of  EdivhiLrgh. 


b 


Belgium.  The  worked  flints  found  in  the  cave  were  of  the 
type  known  as  Mousterien,  and  among  the  fauna  represented 
were  Rhinoceros  ticlwrhinus^  cave -bear,  mammoth,  hya?na,  etc 
No  works  of  art  were  among  the  relics,  so  that  the  Spy  troglodytes 


Fio.  9.  —Side  view. 


Fio.  10.— Top  view. 
Skull  from  the  Orotte  de  Spy  (i).     (After  Fraipont) 

arc  justly  regarded  as  Ijelonging  to  an  earlier  period  tlian  that 
in  which  the  reindeer  hunters  and  artists  flourished. 

The  larger  portion  of  a  lower  human  jaw  (figs.  12  and  13)  was 
disinterred  in  1 865  from  the  debris  in  the  Trou  de  la  Nanlette,  at 
a  depth  of  4-50  metres  beneath  the  last  floor  of  the  cave.  Above 
it  was  a  succession  of  five  stalagmitic  layers,  intercalated  with 


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1908-4.]     Dr  Munro  on  Man  in  the  Palasolithic  Period,        105 
fluvial  deposits  from  the  river  Lease.     The  fauua  represented  in 


Fio.  11. — ^Tracing  showing  size  of  teeth  in  the  lower  jaw  of  Spy  skull  (§). 
(From  photograph. ) 


Fig.  12.— Naulette  jaw— side  view  (|).    (After  M.  Dupont.) 


Fio.  13.— Naulette  jaw— view  from  above  (|).     (After  M.  Dupont.) 

the  same  stratum  included  the  mammoth,  rhinoceros,  horse,  and  a 
number  of  animals   common   to   Neolithic   times.      The   special 


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106  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinhargh,  [sess. 

features  of  this  jaw  are  its  small  height  in  proportion  to  its  thick- 


FiG.  14.— Side  view. 


Fio.  15.  —  Front  view. 
Skull  of  the  •  Old  Man  of  Cro-Magnon  '  (j^). 

ness,  the  backward  slope  of  the  chin,  and  the  large  size  of  the 
socket  of  the  third  molar. 

Figs.  14  and  15  show  front  and  profile  views  of  the  skull  of 


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1903-4.]    Dr  Munro  on  Man  in  the  PalceolUhic  Fei'iod,        107 

the  'old  man  of  Cro-Magnon/  which  discloses  a  decided  approach 
to  the  normal  type  of  civilised  man.  Its  cephalic  index  is  73  6 
and  its  capacity  1590  c.c.  The  height  of  this  individual  was  1*82 
metres  (5  feet  11^  inches).  The  lower  jaw  has  a  large  ascending 
ramus,  behind  which,  on  both  sides,  the  third  molar  is  partly 
hidden.  These  two  teeth  have  also  the  peculiarity  of  being 
smaller  than  the  other  molars,  being  in  this  respect  more  allied  to 
the  dentition  of  Neolithic  and  modem  races.  For  these  reasons, 
as  well  as  the  fact  that  it  was  found  on  the  surface  of  the  Palseo- 
lithic  debris,  some  anthropologists  maintain  that  the  *  old  man  of 


Figs.  16  and  17. — Two  skulls  from  the  Grotte  des  Enlauts,  Meutone. 
(After  M.  Verneau.) 

Cro-Magnon'  belonged  to  the   early  Neolithic  period  —  a   point 
elsewhere  referred  to  in  this  address. 

Figs.  16  and  17  are  reproductions  of  illustrations  by  Dr 
Vemeau  of  two  skulls  found  in  the  Grotte  des  En/ants,  near 
Mentone.  That  on  the  left  belonged  to  a  young  man,  and  that  on 
the  right  to  an  aged  female.  They  are  part  of  two  skeletons 
which  lay  close  together  on  a  hearth-layer  at  a  depth  of  7 '75 
metres.  The  cephalic  index  of  the  former  is  69  72  and  of  the 
latter  68*58.  These  skeletons  were  those  of  small  individuals, 
their  respective  heights  being  1*54  mfetres  (5  feet  OJ  inch)  and 
1*58  metres  (5  feet  2  inches).  About  27^  inches  higher  up  in  the 
debris  another  skeleton,  measuring  no  less  than  1*92  metres  in 
height  (6  feet  3 J  inches),  was  found,  which  presented  all  the 


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108  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh,  [i 


characteristics  of  the  Cro-Magnon  type  (cephalic  index  76'26). 
The  debris  in  which  these  skeletons  were  discovered  contained 
relics  comparable  to  those  of  the  latest  phase  of  the  Palaeolithic 
civilisation  (VAnthropologie,  vol.  xiii.  pp.  661-583). 

Fig.  18  represents  a  series  of  lower  jaws  illustrating,  accord 


Cliimpanzee  —  Troglodyte* 
Avbryi. 


2.  The  Kaulette  jaw,  from  the 
valley  of  the  Leise,  Belginm. 


3.  Melanesian,  from  the  New     . 
Hebrides.  3 


4.  The  Arcy  jaw,    from  the     Z 
GrotU  deg  Fit*  (Yonne).  ^ 

6.  From  Uie  dolmen  of  Cha- 
mans  (Oise). 


6.  Modem  Parisian. 


Fio.  18. — Profile  of  various  lower  jaws.     (After  Broca.) 

ing  to  the  late  Paul  Broca,  the  gradual  evolution  of  the  human 
chin.  M.  Broca  exhibited  the  drawing  in  support  of  his  views  at 
the  International  Congress  of  Anthropology  and  Prehistoric 
ArchfiDology  held  in  Paris  in  1867  {Goraptes  ReTidtts,  p.  399).  The 
Spy  jaw,  which  of  course  was  then  unknown,  would  take  its  place 
in  the  series  between  Kos.  2  and  3 


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1903-4.]     Dr  Munro  on  Man  in  the  Palceolithic  Period,        109 

B. — Evidence  of  progremve  skill  in  tlie  handicraft  works  of  Man, 

Plate  I.  gives  a  full-sized  view  of  a  flint  implement  found,  along 
with  an  elephant's  tooth,  at  Gray's  Inn  Lane,  London,  about  the 
end  of  the  17th  century,  being  the  first  recorded  discovery  of  the 


Fio.  19.— Palaeolithic  flint  implements  from  the  Terracogravel 
at  Galley  Hill  (i). 

kind  in  Britain.  It  is  a  typical  specimen  of  what  French  archae- 
ologists call  the  *  coup  de  poing,'  probably  the  first  definite  type  of 
hand-implement  which  came  to  be  widely  imitated  among  the  earlier 
races  of  man.  Implements  of  this  kind  vary  considerably  in  form 
and  size,  the  degree  of  variability  being,  however,  strictly  compat- 
ible with  its  function  as  a  hand-tool.     Fig.  19  shows  a  variety 


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110  Proceedinffs  of  Royal  Society  of  Ediriburgh,  [i 

of  such  implements  from  the  terrace-gravels  of  Galley  Hill,  Kent* 
Of  course  it  is  not  denied  that  stone  implements  were  used  by  man 
long  before  he  invented  the  *  coup  de  poing/  but  I  am  unable  to 
classify  those  earlier  forms  into  any  chronological  sequence.  Nor 
would  I  hazard  a  guess,  in  the  present  state  of  our  knowledge,  as 
to  whether  it  is  by  centuries  or  millenniums  we  are  to  reckon  the 
duration  of  that  earlier  stage  of  man's  career. 

Worked  flintis  of  the  *  coup  de  poing '  type  are  largely  collected 
from  the  river-drift  gravels  of  England  and  France,  as  well  as 
elsewhere,  and  nearly  all  have  the  peculiarity  of  being  made  by 
chipping  a  nodule  so  as  to  convert  it  into  a  useful  hand-tool — the 
flakes  struck  off  being  apparently  of  no  use.  When,  however,  it 
was  discovered  that  some  of  the  larger  flakes  could  be  utilised  as 
sharp  cutting  tools,  attention  began  to  be  directed  to  the  art  of 
producing  them  for  teleological  purposes.  After  some  experience  a 
skilled  workman  could  produce  a  flake  of  any  required  size  and 
shape.  By  subjecting  these  flakes  to  secondary  chipping,  imple- 
ments of  great  variety  and  efiiciency  were  ultimately  obtained. 
This  was  indeed  an  important  step  in  flint  industry,  evidence  of 
which  is  to  be  found  in  the  fact  that  henceforth  flakes  were  the 
useful  products,  wliile  the  residuary  cores  were  rejected  as  waste. 
The  worked  flints  found  in  the  earlier  inhabited  caves  of  France 
and  Belgium,  such  as  Moustier  and  Spy,  show  that  the  flaking 
stage  was  already  in  full  progress — thus  proving  that  their  habita- 
tion was  later  than  the  formation  of  the  river-drift  gravels. 
Towards  the  middle  of  the  PalsBolithic  civilisation  (Soltttreen)  the 
flint  industry  had  attained  a  state  of  great  perfection,  scarcely  sur- 
passed in  any  subsequent  period. 

That  these  cavemen  did  not  confine  their  awakening  intelligence 
to  the  working  of  flint  objects  is  amply  shown  by  the  array  of 
broken  or  lost  harpoons,  lance-  and  spear-heads,  pins,  needles, 
and  nondescript  articles  made  of  bone  or  deer-horn  which  now 
appear  in  the  debris  of  their  inhabited  sites.  Some  idea  of  their 
skill    in  this    new  industry  may  be   gathered   from    an   inspec- 

♦  These  flint  figures  are  from  the  Quarterly  Journal  of  Vie  Oeologieal 
Society  (vol.  11.).  The  block  was  kindly  lent  to  me  by  the  Council  for  uae  in 
Prehistoric  Problems^  and  it  ia  here  reprinted  from  the  clich6  then  made  for 


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i90»-4.]     Dr  Munro  on  Man  in  the  Palceolithic  PejHod.        Ill 

tion  of  Plate  III.  Indeed  it  would  appear  as  if  bone  and  horn 
had  almost  superseded  flint  in  the  manufacture  of  weapons  of  the 
chase.  This  partly  accounts  for  the  large  number  of  small  flint 
tools,   such    as    knives,   saws,   scrapers,   borers,    etc.,    found    on 


Figs.  20  and  21. — Bovidte  incised  on  stone,  from  the  rock-shelter  of 
Bmniquel  (3).    (After  British  Museum  Catalogue.) 

Magdalenien  sites  (Plate  11. ).  It  was,  no  doubt,  by  means  of  these 
finer  flint  instruments  that  the  artists  were  able  to  bore  the  eye 
of  a  fine  needle,  to  carve  hunting  scenes,  and  to  sculpture  their 
dagger-handles  and  hdtons  de  commandenient  into  the  conventional 
forms  of  familiar  animals. 

The  artistic  skill  displayed  by  these  primitive  hunters  has  been 


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112  Proceedings  of  Boyal  Society  of  Jidinburgh.         [sbss. 

one  of  the  most  astounding  revelations  of  prehistoric  archaeology. 
Typical  specimens  of  their  skill  in  carving  and  sculpture  on  bone, 
deer-horn,  and  ivory  may  be  studied  on  Plates  HI.  to  X.  Figs. 
20  and  21  represent  two  stones  from  the  rock-shelter  of 
Montastruc,  Bruniquel,  with  outlines  of  bovidae  incised  on  them, 
the  forms  of  which  might  have  been  intended  for  the  Bosprimi- 
genius.     The  originals  are  now  in  the  British  Museum. 

C. — The  Carving  and  Painting  of  Animals  on  the  Walls  of 
PaUBolithic  Caves. 

Within   later    years  interest    in    the    art    remains    of    these 


Fio.  22.— Incised  figure  of  horse  on  the  wall  of  the  QroUc  de  la  Moathr. 
(After  E.  Riviere.) 

Palseolithic  hunters  has  been  greatly  stimulated  by  the  dis- 
covery of  large  engravings,  and  even  coloured  paintings,  of 
various  animals  on  the  walls  of  some  newly-explored  caves  in 
the  South  of  France,  more  especially  those  of  Combarelles  and 
Font-de-Gaume,  both  situated  in  the  Commune  of  Tayac  (Dor- 
dogne),  and  within  a  short  distance  of  the  well-known  station 
of  Les  Eyzies.  Obscure  indications  of  this  kind  of  art  had  been 
observed  as  early  as  1875  in  the  cave  of  Altamira,  near  San- 
tander,  in  the  north-east  of  Spain.  Subsequently,  and  at  various 
intervals,  more  pronounced  examples  were  notified  in  the  caves 
of  Chabot   (Giird),    La  Mouthe    (Dordogne),   and   Pair-non-Pair 


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1903-4.]     Dr  Munro  on  Man  in  the  Palaeolithic  Period.       113 

(Gironde),    in    all    of    which    figures    of    animals    regarded    as 
characteristic  of  the  Palaeolithic  period  occurred. 

Of  the  earlier  discoveries  I  reproduce  (after  M.  Riviere)  illus- 
trations of  two  horse  figures  engraved  on  the  walls  of  the  cave 
of  La  Mouthe  {Bvll.  de  la  Socieie  d^ Anthropologies  October  19th). 
These  designs  were  incised  on  a  panel  128  metres  from  the 
entrance.  The  first  (fig.  22)  represents  an  animal  with  a  small 
head,  slender  neck,  and  well-formed  fore-quarters;  but  the 
posterior  part  is  heavy  and  altogether  out  of  proportion.  The 
other  (fig.  23)  has  a  stout  neck,  a  long  head,  with  a  front 
directed  almost  vertically,  and  a  heavy  chin.  Whatever  may 
have  been  the  defects  of  the  artists,  the  originals  of  these  two 


Fig.  23.— Head  of  horse,  QrotU  de  la  Mouthe.    (Riviere.) 

drawings  must  have  been  very  different  animals,  if  not  differ- 
ent species.  Among  the  other  animals  figured  in  this  cave 
were  bison,  bovidae,  reindeer,  goat  and  mammoth. 

On  the  16th  September  1901  MM.  Capitan  and  Breuil  sub- 
mitted a  joint  note  to  the  Paris  Academy  of  Sciences  on  "A 
New  Cave  with  Wall  Engravings  of  the  Palceolithic  Epoch." 
This  was  followed  a  week  later  (23rd  September)  by  a  second 
note,  by  the  same  explorers,  on  "A  New  Cave  with  Painted 
Wall  Figures  of  the  Palaeolithic  Epoch."  A  noteworthy  dis- 
tinction in  the  art  illustrations  of  these  two  caves  is  that  one 
(Combarelles)  has  its  walls  adorned  almost  exclusively  with 
engravings,  cut  more  or  less  deeply,  and  the  other  (Font-de- 
Graume)   with  paintings   in  ochre  and  black,  or  sometimes  only 

PROC.   ROY.   SOC.   EDIN. — VOL.  XXV.  8 


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114  ProceediTigs  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh.  [} 


in  one  colour,  forming  real  silhouettes  of  the  animals  thus   de- 
picted. 

Some  of  the  engravings  in  the  cave  of  Combarelles  have  been 
carefully  copied  and  published  by  the  explorers,  from  which 
the  following  figures  are  reproduced  {Revise  de  I'JScole  d^Anthro- 
pologie,  January  1902). 


Fio.  24. — A  group  of  animals  on  the  wall  of  the  cave  of  Combarelles. 

Fig.  24  shows  a  group  of  animals  on  a  portion  of  the  wall. 
Fig.  25  represents  a  pony  with  a  large  head,  shagg}'  mane,  and 
a  bushy  tail.  It  has  been  suggested  by  MM.  Capitan  and 
Breuil  that  the  animal  was  domesticated,  bridled,  and  draped 
with  some  kind  of  ornamental   covering.     Reindeer,  wild  goat. 


Fig.  25.— Outline  of  horse  supposed  to  be  domesticated.     (Combarelles.) 

and  mammoth  will  be  readily  recognised  under  figs.  26,  27, 
and  28.  It  will  be  of  interest  to  compare  with  the  latter 
figure  that  of  the  skeleton  of  the  mammoth  (fig.  29)  whose 
carcass  was  discovered  in  1799  embedded  in  frozen  tundra  at 
the  mouth  of  the  Lena,  Siberia.  Seven  years  later  it  was 
purchased  by  Mr  Adams  for  the  museum  of  St  Petersburg,  but 
in  the  interval  dogs  and  wild  animals  had  eaten  the  flesh,  and 
only  the  bones  and  fragments  of  the  skin  with  its  long  hair 
could   be   recovered.      The    carcass   of    another    mammoth   was 


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1903-4.]     Dr  Munro  on  Man  in  the  PcUceolithic  Period,        115 

observed  in  1901   near  the  town  of  Stredne-Kolymsk,  and  an 
expedition  under    Dr  O.   Hertz    has    recently   transported    the 


Fig.  26. — Reindeer  incised  on  wall  of  Combarelles. 

entire  animal  in  sections  to  Moscow,  with  the  view  of   mount- 
ing it  with  its  skin. 


Fig.  27. — Figure  of  wild  geat  from  the  cave  ol  Combarellea. 


The  total  number  of  engravings  in  the  cave  of  Combarelles,  so 
far  as  they  could  be  distinctly  made  out,  is  109  : — animals 
entire  but  not  identified,  19;  equidsB,  23;  bovidse,  3;  bison,  2; 


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116  Proceedings  of  Boyal  Society  of  EdiTibv/rgh.  [sbss. 

reindeer,  3;  mammoth,  14;  heads  of  goats,  3;  heads  of  ante- 
lopes, 4 ;  heads  of  various  animals,  chiefly  horses,  36 ;  human 
face,  1  (?);  cup»mark,  1.  These  engravings,  in  the  opinion  of 
the  explorers,  betray  so  much  artistic  skill,  precision  of  details. 


ilf^"^ 


Fio,  28. — Incised  figure  of  mammoth  in  cave  of  Combarellos, 
Figs.  24  to  28  are  reduced  from  the  drawings  of  MM.  Capitan  and  Breuil. 

and  knowledge  of  animal  life,   that   they  must  be   regarded  fas 
vahiable  documents  in  Palaeontology, 


Fig*.  29.— Skeleton  of  the  mammoth  found  in  Siberia  in  1799, 
now  in  St  Petersburg. 

^fore  recently,  M^f.  Capitan  and  Breuil  published  ilhistrations 
of  some  of  the  painted  figures  on  the  walls  of  the  Grotte  de  Font- 
de-Gaume  on  two  plates,  one  of  which  is  here  reproduced  (PI.  XT.) 
on  a  smaller  scale — (Revue  de  VEcole  d^ Anthropologies  July  1902). 


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1903-4.]     Dr  Munro  on  Man  in  the  Fakeolithic  Period.        117 

This  plate  represents  an  excellent  picture  of  a  bison  (fig.  1)  and 
a  still  more  striking  one  of  two  reindeer  (fig.  2).  The  original 
drawing  of  the  former  is  painted  in  ochre,  and  measures 
1  m.  50  in  length  and  1  m.  25  in  height ;  that  of  the  latter 
is  2  m.  10  in  length  and  1  nu  50  in  height^  and  presents  the 
peculiarity  of  having  portion  of  the  figure  on  the  left  executed 
in  incised  lines. 

The  total  number  of  painted  figures  in  this  cave  is  77:— 
aurochs,  49;  indeterminate  animals,  11;  reindeer,  4;  stag,  1; 
equidse,  2 ;  antelopes,  3 ;  mammoth,  2 ;  geometrical  ornaments,  3 ; 
scalariform  signs,  2.  The  authors  suggest  that  these  paintings 
belong  to  a  later  period  than  the  engravings  on  the  walls  of 
Combarelles,  founding  their  opinion  on  the  frequency  of  the 
figures  of  the  bison,  and  the  rarity  of  those  of  the  reindeer 
and  mammoth.  Time  will  not  allow  me  to  enlarge  on  the 
details  of  these  remarkable  rock  carvings  and  paintings,  more 
than  to  say  that  MM.  Capitan  and  Breuil  have,  by  their  ex- 
plorations and  published  reports,  greatly  added  to  our  know- 
ledge of  Palaeolithic  civilisation. 

III.  Human  Culturb  and  Civilisation  in  thb  Pal^outhic 

Period. 

These  illustrations,  though  only  covering  a  small  portion  of  the 
available  materials,  are  sufficient  to  give  a  general  idea  of  the 
salient  features  of  the  stage  of  culture  to  which  the  inhabitants 
of  Europe  had  attained  towards  the  close  of  the  PalfiBolithic  period. 
We  have  seen  that  all  their  works  were  characterised  by  a  gradual 
development  from  simple  to  more  complex  forms*  Implements, 
tools  and  weapons  were  slowly  but  surely  being  made  more 
efficient,  thus  evincing  on  the  part  of  their  manufacturers  a  pro- 
gressive knowledge  of  mechanical  principles.  Hence,  French 
anthropologists  have  arranged  these  cave-remains  in  chronological 
sequence,  using  the  names  of  the  most  typical  stations  to  define 
various  stages  of  culture,  as  MoustSrien^  SolutrSen^  and  Mag- 
daUnien.  The  earliest  troglodytic  station,  according  to  the 
classification  of  M.  G.  de  MortiUet,  was  le  Moudier^  situated  on 
the  left  bank  of  the  Vezere  (Dordogne).  During  its  habitation  by 
man  the  climate  was  cold  and  damp,  and  among  the  contemporary 


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118  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edivhurgh.  [sbs. 

fauna  were  the  mammoth,  woolly  rhinoceros,  cave-bear  and  musk- 
ox.  The  special  features  of  the  industrial  remains  of  this  period 
were  the  scarcity  of  the  coup  de  p<nng^  which  is  so  character- 
istic of  the  older  river-drift  deposits,  and  the  splitting  up  of 
flints  into  smaller  'implements,  such  as  scrapers,  trimmed  flakes, 
etc.  The  next  station  in  ascending  order  was  the  open-air  encamp- 
ment of  Solutrd  (Saone-et-Loire).  The  stage  of  civilisation  here 
disclosed  was  characterised  by  great  perfection  in  the  art  of 
manufacturing  flint  implements,  especially  spear  and  lance-heads, 
in  the  form  of  a  laurel  leaf  (Plate  II.  No.  12),  and  by  the  abundance 
of  horses  and  reindeer,  which  were  used  by  the  inhabitants  as 
food.  The  climate  was  mild  and  dry,  the  great  glaciers  were  on 
the  wane,  and  the  rhinoceros  seems  to  have  disappeared  from  the 
scene.  The  third  and  last  of  the  typical  stations  was  the  well- 
known  rock-shelter  of  La  Madelaine  (Dordogne),  characterised  by 
the  abundance  of  objects  made  of  bone  and  horn,  the  development 
of  a  remarkable  artistic  talent,  the  predominance  of  a  northern 
climate  and  fauna,  and  the  extinction  of  the  mammoth  towards  the 
close  of  the  period. 

With  regard  to  the  ethnological  characteristics  of  these  people 
little  information  is  to  be  gained  from  their  artistic  productions,  as 
the  few  engravings  and  sculptures  of  the  human  form  hitherto 
discovered  are  too  rude  or  fragmentary  to  be  of  much  value  in  this 
respect.  That  these  artist-hunters  should  have  displayed  less 
aptitude  in  the  delineation  of  their  own  form  and  features  than  of 
those  of  the  animals  hunted,  shows  how  restricted  was  their  con- 
ception of  human  life  and  of  the  dignity  of  man.  Evidently  the 
cult  of  humanity  was  still  in  the  womb  of  futurity,  and  the 
struggle  of  life  alone  was  uppermost  in  their  minds.  It  may  be 
stated,  however,  that,  so  far  as  this  line  of  research  leads  us,  these 
anthropoid  figures -represent  both  sexes  as  nude  and  covered  with 
hair,  some  of  them  also  being,  from  our  point  of  view,  indecent^ 
On  the  other  hand,  there  can  be  no  doubt,  judging  from  the 
number  of  bone  needles  and  pins  collected  on  their  inhabited  sites, 
that  they  wore  clothing  probably  made  of  skins.  Indeed,  it 
would  be  impossible  for  human  beings  who  had  their  origin  in  a 
warmer  climate  to  endure  with  impunity  the  inclemency  of  the 
sub-arctic  climate  which  then  obtained  in  Central  Europe  without 


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1903-4.]    Dr  Munro  on  Man  in  tike  PcUceolithic  Period.       119 

personal  protection  of  some  kind.  Our  knowledge  of  their 
physique  and  general  appearance  is,  as  already  mentioned, 
mainly  derived  from  a  comparison  of  a  few  of  their  fossil 
skeletons  with  those  of  modem  civilised  races.  On  this  phase 
of  the  subject  we  have  a  considerable  amount  of  evidence  to 
show  that  since  man  parted  company  with  the  lower  animals, 
there  has  been  a  gradual  expansion  of  the  cranium,  corresponding 
to  an  enlargement  of  certain  portions  of  the  organ  of  thought. 
All  such  materials  have,  however,  to  be  carefully  sifted  and 
scrutinised  before  being  admitted  as  valid  assets  in  a  scientific* 
inquiry ;  and  even  then,  this  kind  of  evidence  seldom  amounts  to 
more  than  probability  without  being  corroborated  by  other  dis- 
coveries. The  subject  has  grown  so  much  of  late  that  it  was 
impossible  in  the  limits  at  my  disposal  to  do  more  than  giv«  a 
few  pertinent  examples.  The  race  represented  by  the  skulls  of 
Neanderthal  and  Spy  was  long  anterior  to  the  time  of  the  Palseo- 
lithic  hunters  of  the  reindeer  period,  who  so  greatly  distinguished 
themselves  as  artists ;  and  as  to  the  Java  skull  and  femur,  they 
are  probably  the  oldest  osseous  relics  of  man  yet  known.  The 
human  remains  found  in  the  rock-shelter  of  Cro-Magnon  have  been 
for  a  long  time  regarded  as  belonging  to,  and  typical  of,  the  latest 
Palaeolithic  people ;  but  as  they  were  merely  lying  over  the  culture- 
debris,  they  are  regarded  by  some  archseologists  as  burials  of  a 
more  recent  date.  The  fact  that  the  last  molars  were  smaller 
than  the  others  gives  additional  support  to  this  view.  It  does 
not,  however,  appear  to  me  that  this  point  is  of  much  conse- 
quence, as  the  amount  of  superincumbent  talus  under  which  the 
skeletons  lay  shows  that  they  could  not  be  later  than  the  transition 
period.  Moreover,  there  are  other  human  remains  with  regard  to 
which  no  such  doubts  have  been  raised,  as,  for  example,  the  well- 
known  skulls  of  Chancelade  and  Laugerie  Basse,  both  found  in  the 
Dordogne  district,  which  show  equally  advanced  cranial  characters. 
The  recent  discovery  of  two  skeletons,  which  Dr  Verneau,  of 
Paris,  describes  as  belonging  to  a  new  race  intermediate  between 
the  Neanderthaloid  and  Cro-Magnon  races,  marks  an  important 
addition  to  fossil  craniology.  From  the  preliminary  facts  already- 
published,  and  from  what  Dr  Verneau  has  told  me,  anthropologists 
may  look  forward  with  high  expectation  to  the  full  report  of  these 


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1 20  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh.  [i 

and  other  discoveries  in  the  Mentone  caves,  which  is  now  being 
prepared  under  the  direction  of  the  Prince  of  Monaco.  We  have 
already  seen  that  in  the  same  cave,  and  only  0*70  metre  (27^ 
inches)  above  the  site  of  the  two  skeletons  just  referred  to,  another 
skeleton  of  the  Cro-Magnon  type  has  been  discovered,  thus  bring- 
ing two  different  races  almost  on  the  same  chronological  horizon. 
But  this  by  no  means  discredits  Dr  Yemeau's  theory,  as  it  is  not 
at  all  unlikely  that,  while  a  higher  race  was  being  developed, 
some  individuals  of  lower  but  vanishing  races  still  survived  in 
»  Europe.  Indeed,  the  point  is  no  longer  a  matter  of  conjecture,  as 
recently  two  skulls  of  a  distinct  negroid  type  have  been  found 
among  Neolithic  remains  in  Brittany.*  The  skull  of  the  'old 
man  of  Cro-Magnon'  is  large  and  well-proportioned,  both  pos- 
teriorly and  anteriorly,  thus  indicating  a  great  stride  in  the 
development  of  mental  capacity,  but  perhaps  not  more  than  might 
be  ex(>ected  of  a  people  who  displayed  such  artistic  feeling 
and  mechanical  skill  as  the  authors  of  the  art  gallery  of  the  rein- 
deer period.  But  how  radically  their  aims,  hopes,  aspirations,  and 
manner  of  life  differed  from  those  of  their  Neolithic  successors  we 
shall  immediately  be  in  a  position  to  realise. 

It  would  appear  from  these  combined  sources  of  investigation 
that  the  earliest  Palaeolithic  people  of  Europe  entered  the  country 
from  Africa,  at  a  time  when  there  was  easy  communication  between 
these  continents  by  several  land  bridges  across  the  present  basin  of 
the  Mediterranean.  At  that  time  man's  mental  predominance  over 
other  animals  was  not  so  conspicuous  as  it  now  is,  as  shown  by  the 
fact  that  his  mechanical  ingenuity  was  only  adequate  to  the  pro- 
duction of  one  typical  implement — the  coup  de  poing.  Implements 
of  this  kind  are  chiefly  found  in  the  stranded  gravels  of  former 
rivers,  and,  from  their  wide  distribution  in  the  Old  World,  they 
must  have  been  then  regarded  as  the  ne  plus  ultra  of  human 
craftsmanship.  Their  original  owners  are  supposed  to  have  in- 
habited the  wooded  banks  of  these  rivers,  wandering  about  in 
isolated  family  groups  till  the  advent  of  the  glacial  period  roused 
their  dormant  energies.  It  is  difficult  to  realise  how  much  the 
severe  climatal  conditions  which  then  prevailed  in  Europe  con- 
tributed to  the  perfection  of  human  attributes,  and  consequently 
*  Bull,  de  la  SocUU  d* AMhropologie  de  Paris,  series  y.,  vol.  iv.  ]».  482. 


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1903-4.]     Dr  Munro  on  Man  in  the  PalceolUhic  Period.        121 

to  the  progress  of  civilisation.  The  beneficial  effect  of  this  uncon- 
genial environment  on  these  early  pioneers  of  humanity  was  to 
stimulate  their  natural  capabilities  of  improvement — for  the  adage 
that  necessity  is  the  mother  of  invention  was  as  applicable  then 
as  now.  Entering  Europe  as  naked,  houseless  nomads,  living  on 
wild  fruits  and  the  smaller  fauna  of  a  sub-tropical  climate,  they 
were  ultimately  forced  by  the  severity  of  the  climate  to  take 
refuge  in  caves  and  rock-shelters  and  to  cover  their  bodies  with 
skins.  The  natural  food  productions  of  a  warm  climate  gradually 
disappeared,  until  finally  there  was  little  left  but  fierce  animals, 
such  as  the  mammoth,  reindeer,  chamois,  horse,  bison,  etc.,  which 
came  from  northern  regions  into  Central  Europe.  To  procure  the 
necessary  food  and  clothing  in  these  circumstances  greatly  taxed 
the  skill  and  resources  of  the  inhabitants.  But  this  difficulty  they 
ultimately  solved  by  the  manufacture  of  special  weapons  of  the 
chase,  with  which  they  successfully  attacked  the  larger  wild 
animals  which  then  occupied  the  country.  The  coup  de  poing, 
which  for  a  long  time  served  all  the  purposes  of  primitive  life^ 
gradually  gave  place  to  spear-  and  lance-heads  fixed  on  long 
handles,  together  with  a  great  variety  of  minor  weapons  and  tools 
made  of  stone,  bone,  horn  and  wood.  When  the  Palceolithic 
people  finally  emerged  from  this  singular  contest  with  the  forces 
of  nature,  they  were  physically  and  mentally  better  than  ever 
equipped  for  the  exigencies  of  life.  A  greater  power  of  physical 
endurance,  improved  reasoning  faculties,  an  assortment  of  tools 
adapted  for  all  kinds  of  mechanical  work,  and  some  experience 
of  the  advantage  of  housing  and  clothing,  may  be  mentioned 
among  the  trophies  which  they  carried  away  from  that  long  and 
uphill  struggle. 

The  civilisation  thus  developed  represents  the  outcome  of  a 
system  of  human  economy  founded  on  the  free  play  of  natural 
laws,  and  little  affected  by  the  principles  of  religion  or  ethics 
— subjects  which  were  as  yet  in  their  embryonic  stage.  The 
mysteries  of  the  supernatural  had  not  then  been  formulated 
into  the  concrete  ideas  of  gods  or  demons.  The  notions  of 
good  and  evil,  right  and  wrong,  were  still  dominated  by  the 
cosmic  law  that  might  is  rightw  Neither  gloomy  forebodings 
nor  qualms  of  conscience   had  much   influence  on  the  actions 


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122        •  Proceedings  of  Boy cd  Society  of  Edirtburgh.  [skss. 

of  these  people.  Their  philosophical  and  sentimental  speculations, 
if  they  had  any,  centred  exclusively  on  th6  habits  of  the  animals 
they  hunted,  and  on  the  strategic  means  by  which  they  could 
be  waylaid  and  captured.  During  this  time  they  made  great 
progress  in  the  development  of  mechanical  appliances,  as  shown 
by  the  number  of  flint  implements — saws,  borers,  scrapers,  etc. 
—  with  which  they  manufactured  needles,  pins,  ornaments, 
weapons  and  other  objects,  including  the  so  -  called  bdtons  de 
commandement  Upon  the  whole,  it  would  appear  as  if  their 
minds  were  engrossed  with  the  chase  and  its  exciting  scenes  and 
incidents,  for  their  domestic  economy  indicated  little  more  than 
the  art  of  broiling  the  flesh  of  the  captured  animals  and  con- 
verting their  skins  into  garments.  Possibly  some  round  pebbles 
abundantly  found  in  the  debris  might  have  been  used  as  'pot- 
boilers,' but  a  few  stone  mortars  (PI.  II.  No.  14),  which 
occasionally  turned  up,  would  seem  to  have  been  used  only  for 
mixing  colouring  matter  to  paint  their  bodies,  as  some  modem 
savages  do.  Of  agriculture,  the  rearing  of  domestic  animals, 
the  arts  of  spinning  and  weaving,  and  the  manufacture  of  pottery, 
they  appear  to  have  been  absolutely  ignorant.  But  yet,  in  an 
environment  of  such  primitive  resources  and  limited  culture 
associations,  these  M'ild  hunters  developed  a  genuine  taste  for 
art,  and  cultivated  its  principles  so  effectually  that  they  have 
bequeathed  to  us  an  art  gallery  of  over  400  pieces  of  sculpture  and 
engraving  so  true  to  their  models  that  many  of  them  bear  a 
favourable  comparison  with  analogous  works  of  the  present  day. 
They  adorned  their  persons  with  perforated  teeth,  shells,  coloured 
pebbles,  and  pendants  of  various  kinds.  They  depicted  the 
animals  with  which  they  were  familiar,  especially  those  they 
hunted  for  food,  in  all  their  various  moods  and  attitudes,  often 
with  startling  fidelity.  Harpoons,  spears  and  daggers  •  of  horn 
and  bone  were  skilfully  engraved,  and  sometimes  the  handles 
of  the  last  were  sculptured  into  the  conventional  form  of  one 
or  other  of  their  favourite  animals.     (See  Pis.  III.  to  X.) 

They  also  in  some  instances  adorned  the  walls  of  the  caverns 
they  frequented  with  incised  outlines  of  the  neigh Ix^uring  fauna 
(figs.  22-28),  and  made  actual  •colour  paintings  of  them  in  black 
and  ochre,  or  in  one  of  these  colours  (PI.  XI.).     The  discovery 


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1903-4.]     Dr  Munro  on  Man  in  the  PcUceolithic  FeiHod,       123 

of  so  many  art  specimens  is  of  considerable  importance  among 
the  more  notable  facts  disclosed  by  these  anthropological  re- 
searches, as  it  proves  that  the  origin  of  the  artistic  faculty  was 
independent  of,  and  prior  to,  the  evolution  of  religion,  ethics, 
politics,  commerce,  and  other  elements  of  which  our  modem 
civilisation  is  built  up. 

The  other  characteristic  feature  in  the  lives  of  these  people 
was,  that  they  lived  exclusively  on  the  produce  of  the  chase, 
for,  without  agricultural  and  pastoral  avocations,  what  else  could 
they  do  but  organise  daily  hunting  or  fishing  expeditions!  To 
capture  the  big  game  of  the  district  was  a  formidable  task, 
requiring  not  only  great  strength  and  agility  of  person  and 
limb,  but  also  strong  and  well-made  weapons.  During  the 
later  stages  of  the  Palaeolithic  civilisation  their  principal  prey 
consisted  of  reindeer  and  horses,  both  of  which  animals  then 
roamed  in  large  herds  throughout  Western  Europe,  thus  rendering 
themselves  more  liable  to  be  ambushed,  trapped  or  speared  by 
their  wily  enemies.  It  is  not  likely  that  they  would  take  the 
initiative  in  attacking  the  hyaena,  lion,  or  cave-bear,  except  in 
self-defence.  That,  however,  these  formidable  creatures  were 
occasionally  captured  by  them  is  suggested  by  the  fact  tihat  their 
canine  teeth  were  highly  prized  as  personal  ornaments,  or  as  a 
memento  of  their  prowess  in  the  chase.  The  weapons  used  by 
these  hunters  were  harpoons,  generally  made  of  reindeer-horn, 
spear-  and  lance-heads  of  flint,  and  short  daggers  of  bone  or 
horn.  Before  these  weapons  were  invented  it  is  difficult  to 
imagine  that  any  member  of  the  genus  Homo  would  have  the 
courage  to  attack  such  a  formidable  animal  as  the  mammoth 
armed  only  with  a  coup  de  jpoing,  but  yet  there  are  facts  which 
suggest  that  such  was  the  case. 

When  the  physical  conditions  which  called  these  accomplish- 
ments into  existence  passed  away,  and  the  peculiar  fauna  of  the 
glacial  period  disappeared  from  the  lowlands  of  Central  Europe 
— some  by  extinction,  and  others  by  emigration  to  more  northern 
regions  or  to  the  elevated  mountains  in  the  neighbourhood — we 
find  the  inhabitants  of  these  old  hunting  grounds  in  possession 
of  new  and  altogether  different  sources  of  food.  Finding  the 
former  supplies  becoming  so  limited  and  precarious  that  it  was 


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124  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh.  [sess. 

no  longer  possible  to  live  a  roaming  life,  now  gathering  fruits 
and  seeds,  and  now  hunting  wild  animals,  they  fell  somehow 
into  the  way  of  cultivating  special  plants  and  cereals,  and  rearing 
certain  animals  in  a  state  of  domestication.  Whether  this  new 
departure  was  a  product  of  the  intelligence  of  the  descendants 
of  the  PalsBolithic  people  of  Europe,  or  derived  from  new 
immigrants  into  the  country,  is  a  debatable  question.  At  any 
rate,  the  expedient  was  eminently  successful.  It  was  in  reality 
the  starting-point  of  Neolithic  civilisation,  and  henceforth  there 
was  a  rapid  increase  in  the  population.  They  cultivated  a  variety 
of  fruits,  wheat,  barley  and  other  cereals ;  they  reared  oxen,  sheep, 
goats,  pigs,  horses  and  dogs ;  they  became  skilled  in  the  ceramic 
art,  and  in  the  manufacture  of  cloth  by  spinning  and  weaving  wool 
and  fibrous  textures ;  they  ground  stone  implements  so  as  to  give 
them  a  sharp  cutting  edge;  in  hunting  the  forest  fauna  of  the 
period  they  used,  in  addition  to  spears,  lances  and  daggers,  the 
bow  and  arrow;  they  built  houses,  both  for  the  living  and  the 
dead — thus  showing  that  religiosity  had  become  an  active  and 
governing  principle  among  them.  But  of  the  artistic  taste  and 
skill  of  their  predecessors  they  had  scarcely  a  vestige,  and  what- 
ever they  did  by  way  of  ornament  consisted  mainly  of  a  few 
scratches,  arranged  in  some  simple  geometrical  pattern.  The 
fundamental  principles  of  the  two  civilisations  are  really  so 
divergent  that  the  Neolithic  can  hardly  be  regarded  as  a  local 
development  of  the  latest  phase  of  that  of  the  Palaeolithic  period 
in  Europe.  The  probability  is  that,  while  the  isolated  colonies 
of  reindeer  hunters  were  still  in  existence,  people  of  the  same 
stock  were  elsewhere  passing  through  the  evolutionary  stages 
which  connected  the  two  civilisations  together. 

The  far-reaching  consequence  of  securing  food  supplies  by  means 
of  agriculture  and  the  domestication  of  animals  led  to  more 
sedentary  and  social  habits.  The  existence  of  large  communities 
concurrent  with  the  development  of  various  trades  and  professions 
was  but  a  matter  of  time,  the  outcome  of  which  is  now  a  vast 
system  of  international  commerce.  Already  the  greater  portion  of 
the  earth  capable  of  being  cultivated  is  converted  into  gardens  and 
fields,  whose  choice  productions  are  readily  conveyed  to  all  the  large 
cities  of  the  globe.     Flesh  diet  is  abundant,  but  it  is  no  longer 


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1903-4.]        Dr  Munro  on  Man  in  the  Pateeolithic  Period,     125 

necessary  to  hunt  the  animals  in  primeval  forests.  Skin-coats, 
dug-outs  and  stone  weapons  are  now  lineally  represented  by 
woven  fabrics,  Atlantic  liners  and  Long  Toms. 

Were  it  possible  for  one  of  our  Palaeolithic  ancestors  to  sit  in 
judgment  on  the  comparative  merits  of  the  two  civilisations,  I 
fancy  his  verdict  would  be  something  like  the  following  :  "  You 
have  utilised  the  forces  of  nature  to  a  marvellous  extent,  and 
thereby  greatly  increased  the  means  of  subsistence  to  your  fellow- 
creatures  j  but,  at  the  same  time,  you  have  facilitated  the  physical 
degeneracy  of  your  race  by  multiplying  the  sources  of  human 
disease  and  misery.  The  invention  of  money  has  facilitated  the 
accumulation  and  transmission  of  riches  to  a  few;  but  it  has 
impoverished  the  many,  and  supplied  incentives  to  fraud,  theft,  and 
aU  manner  of  crime.  Patriarchal  establishments  have  given  place 
to  social  organisations,  governed  by  laws  founded  on  moral  senti- 
ments and  ethics ;  but  their  by-products  are  extreme  luxury  and 
extreme  poverty.  Hence,  to  support  the  weak  and  the  unfortunate 
is  no  longer  a  matter  of  charity,  but  a  legal  and  moral  obligation. 
Notwithstanding  the  size  of  your  asylums,  hospitals  and  alms- 
houses, they  are  always  full  and  always  on  the  increase.  Your 
legislators  are  selected  by  the  voice  of  the  majority :  what  if  that 
majority  be  steeped  in  superstition,  prejudice  and  ignorance? 
You  have  formulated  various  systems  of  religion,  but  whether 
founded  on  the  principles  of  fetichism,  polytheism  or  monotheism, 
they  are  still  more  or  less  permeated  with  contradictory  or  contro- 
verted creeds  and  dogmas.  Natural  sport,  as  practised  with 
weapons  of  modem  precision,  can  only  be  characterised  as  legalised 
killing  of  helpless  creatures.  To  shoot  pigeons  suddenly  liberated 
from  a  box  at  a  measured  distance,  or  overfed  pheasants,  even 
after  they  have  managed  to  take  wing,  or  semi-domesticated  deer, 
especially  when  driven  to  the  muzzle  of  a  rifle — all,  of  course, 
within  sight  of  a  luncheon  basket — is  a  poor  substitute  for  the 
excitement  and  field  incidents  of  the  chase  in  Palaeolithic  times. 
With  no  better  weapons  than  a  spear,  or  lance  tipped  with  a 
pointed  flint,  and  a  small  dagger  of  bone  or  horn,  we  had,  not 
infrequently,  to  encounter  in  mortal  combat  the  mammoth, 
rhinoceros,  cave-bear,  or  some  other  fierce  and  hungry  animal,  which, 
like  ourselves,  was  prowling  in  quest  of  a  morning  meal.     Such 


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126  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh,        [; 

scenes  had  many  of  the  elements  of  true  sport,  and  being  essential 
to  our  existence,  were  of  daily  occurrence.  Moreover,  from  the 
standpoint  of  modem  ethics,  our  method  put  the  combatants 
on  something  like  a  footing  of  equality,  or  at  leadt  gave  our  prey  a 
fair  chance  of  escape.  "We  cultivated  physical  and  manly  qualities 
by  the  natural  exercise  of  the  senses,  and  personal  prowess  was  the 
distinguishing  prerogative  of  our  heroes.  Thus  we  acquired  the 
experience,  skill,  strength,  agility  and  courage  of  practised  athletes 
— qualities  which  left  no  room  for  cowardice.  With  us  *  brain 
power '  passed  almost  directly  from  the  generator  to  the  muscles 
of  the  administrator;  with  you  it  has  to  pass  through  a  complicated 
system  of  accumulators  and  distributors,  liable  to  various  degrees  of 
leakage,  and  it  is  this  leakage  which  often  sucks  dry  the  life-blood 
of  your  civilisation.  Finally,  the  permanence  of  your  civilisation 
remains  to  be  tested  by  the  touchstone  of  time.  For  civilisations, 
like  the  genera  and  species  of  the  organic  world,  have  their  life- 
histories  determined  by  laws  as  fixed  and  definite  as  those  that 
govern  the  resultant  of  the  parallelogram  of  forces.  To  cosmic 
evolution,  under  which  our  race  and  civilisation  to  a  large  extent 
flourished,  you  have  superadded  altruism,  which  means  the  sur- 
vival of  the  weak  as  well  as  of  the  strong.  But  altruism  will 
continue  to  be  a  living  force  among  civilised  communities  only  so 
long  as  present  and  prospective  food  suppUes  hold  out.  For, 
after  all,  the  essential  problem  of  your  social  existence  is  to 
procure  food  for  an  ever-increasing  population.  Whenever  these 
necessaries  of  life  become  inadequate  to  meet  the  d'emands  of  the 
inhabitants  of  this  globe,  then  your  boasted  civilisation  comes  to 
the  end  of  its  tether,  and  the  only  solution  of  the  crisis  will  be  to 
reduce  your  numbers  by  a  recurrence — sauve  qui  pent — to  the 
cosmic  law  of  *  the  survival  of  the  fittest." 


DESCRIPTION  OF  PLATES. 

I.  A  flint  implement  in  the  British  Museum  found,  with  a  skeleton  of  an 
elephant,  near  Gray's  Inn  Lane,  London,  about  the  close  of  the  seventeenth 
century.  Reproduced  from  plate  i.  of  Guide  to  the  Antiquities  of  the  Stone 
Age  in  the  British  Museum. 

II.  Specimens  of  flint  tools  illustrating  the  progressive  skill  of  the  Paleo- 
lithic cavemen  of  France,  chiefly  from  the  Lartet  and  Christy  Collection,  now 


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190  :-4.]        Dr  Munro  on  Man  in  the  Palctolithic  Period,     127 

in  London  and  Paris.  Nos.  1-7,  9-11,  18  and  19  represent  saws,  borers, 
sorapers,  etc.  from  the  later  stations.  Noe.  12  and  16  are  illustrations  of  the 
laurel-leaf-shaped  lance-heads  commonly  described  as  belonging  to  the  Solu- 
tr4en  period.  The  former  was  found  at  Laugerie  Basse  (Col.  Mass^nat-Girod), 
and  the  latter  (made  of  agate)  in  the  Grotte  de  I'^glise  (Dordogne).  Nos.  8, 
15y  17  and  21  are  specimens  of  the  earlier  implements  from  Le  Moustier,  and 
are  all  trimmed  flakes,  with  the  exception  of  17,  which  is  a  small  c(mp  de 
poing.  No.  13  represents  a  core  from  Les  Eyzies,  showing  on  the  left  a  small 
portion  of  the  original  surface  of  the  flint,  and  No.  20  a  well-made  flake  from 
La  Madelaine.  A  small  mortar  made  out  of  a  waterwom  pebble  from  Les 
Eyzies  is  shown  under  figure  14 ;  others  like  it  have  been  recorded  from 
La  Madelaine,  Laugerie  Basse,  Bruniquel,  and  probably  elsewhere. 

III.  Weapons  and  ornaments  made  of  bone,  teeth,  deer-horn,  ivory  and 
shells.  Nos.  1-14,  16,  17-19  (ivory),  20,  25  (ox),  26  (fox),  27  and  28  are 
from  La  Madelaine  (Col.  L.  and  C).  Nos.  6-14  are  from  Laugerie  Basse 
(CoL  Mass^nat-Girod).  Nos.  24  and  29,  representing  a  supposed  whistle  and 
a  sculptured  dagger,  are  from  Laugerie  Basse  (Col.  L.  and  C).  No.  16  is 
a  thin  plaque  carved  of  bone,  probably  an  ornamental  pendant,  found  at 
Bruniquel  (British  Museimi).  Nos.  21-23  are  from  Kent's  Cavern.  The 
precise  use  of  the  pointed  objects  figured  under  Nos.  12-14,  28  and  30  is 
not  known,  but  it  is  probable  that  they  were  the  tips  of  small  lances  pro- 
pelled by  means  of  such  an  implement  as  is  figured  under  No.  8,  Plate  IV. 
The  small  harpoon  (No.  27)  might  have  been  used  as  an  arrow-point,  but 
we  have  no  evidence  that  bows  and  arrows  were  then  in  use. 

IV.  On  this  Plate  there  is  a  collection  of  objects  from  various  stations 
illustrating  the  art  of  the  Palaeolithic  people.  No.  1  shows  a  portion  of 
reindeer-horn  with  a  rude  representation  of  a  prone  man,  ap}>arently  in  the 
act  of  throwing  a  spear  at  a  male  auroch.  The  hands  are  imperfectly  repre- 
sented, the  body  is  covered  with  hair,  and  a  cord,  possibly  attached  to  the 
head  of  a  harpoon,  falls  behind  the  legs.  This  specimen  was  found  at 
Laugerie  Basse  (Col.  Mass^nat-Girod).  Nos.  2  and  14  represent  portions  of 
darts  with  badly-executed  human  hands,  showing  only  four  fingers.  Nos. 
3,  4  and  6  are  from  La  Madelaine  (CoL  L.  and  C).  One  (8)  represents  a 
piece  of  stag's  horn  (hdUm  de  ccmmandeineTU),  having  a  stag  iivith  complex 
antlers  incised  on  it.  Another  (4)  is  a  plate  of  the  canon  bone  of  a  reindeer 
with  incised  figures  of  bovine  animals.  The  third  represents  a  truncated  dart 
ornamented  with  flowers,  and  what  looks  like  the  outstretched  skin  of  a 
fox.  No.  6  is  from  Les  Eyzies,  and  shows  a  ruminant  having  a  spear 
entering  its  breast  {ibid. ).  A  portion  of  a  bevelled  dart-head  from  Laugerie 
Bfisse,  with  a  sequence  of  half-fledged  birds,  is  shown  by  No.  7  {ihid. ).  No.  8 
represents  a  dart-propeller  from  Laugerie  Basse,  ornamented  with  a  horse's 
head  and  an  elongated  forepart  of  a  deer  (iMd,).  Nos.  9,  10  and  16  are 
also  from  Laugerie  Basse  (Col.  Massenat-Girod),  and  represent  the  well- 
extended  antlers  of  a  reindeer  (9),  an  otter  eating  a  salmon  (10),  and  a 
hare  (16),  sculptured  in  ivory.  No.  11,  unmistakably  sho\iing  the  hind 
portion  of  a  pig,  is  from  the  Kesslerloch,  Switzerland  (after  Conrad  Merk). 
On  the  canine  of  a  bear  (No.  12)  from  Duruthy  Cave  a  seal  is  engraved 
{Beliquice  Acquitanicce,  p.  223).  The  palm  of  the  brow  antler  of  a  reindeer 
is  incised  with  the  figure  of  some  kind  of  horned  animal  (No.  13),  probably 
intended  for  an  ibex. 


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128  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh.  [sbss. 

V.  This  Plate  shows  a  famous  relic  in  the  form  of  a  piece  of  ivory  ^m 
the  outside  layer  of  the  tusk,  having  incised  on  it  the  outline  of  a  hairy 
elephant  (Col.  L.  and  C).  The  lofty  skull  and  hollow  forehead  of  the  animal 
here  represented  are  characteristic  of  the  Siberian  manmioth,  as  shown  by  its 
skeleton  (fig.  29).  On  comparing  it  also  with  the  figure  of  the  mammofch 
incised  on  the  wall  of  Combarelles  (Ug.  28),  one  cannot  fail  to  be  struck 
with  the  striking  resemblance  between  them. 

VI.  Portion  of  a  reindeer-horn  (bdUm  de  eommandemtiU),  having  salmon 
engraved  on  one  side  and  eels  on  the  other. 

VII.  Two  bdUms  de  commandemerU  from  La  Madelaine,  one  showing  a 
human  figure  with  an  upraised  club,  as  if  going  to  strike  a  horse  in  front 
of  him,  while  a  serpent  (?)  seems  to  be  in  the  act  of  biting  his  heel;  the 
other  shows  four  large-headed  ponies  in  sequence  (0>1.  L.  and  C.)* 

VIII.  Figures  of  a  reindeer,  horse,  and  three  ornaments  from  the  Eesaler- 
loch  C)ave,  near  Schaffhausen.  The  two  former  are  among  the  chef-d^CBUvres  of 
Paleolithic  art.  Of  the  hanging  ornaments  two  are  made  of  shale.  All  the 
figures  are  after  Conrad  Merk. 

IX.  Two  carved  handles  of  daggers  like  the  complete  specimen  from 
Laugerie  Basse  figured  on  Plate  III.  No.  29.  The  reindeer  is  carved  in 
ivory  and  the  mammoth  in  reindeer-horn.  These  interesting  relics,  as  well 
as  a  third  handle  of  the  same  kind,  are  from  the  rock-shelter  of  Bruniquel, 
and  are  now  among  the  antiquarian  treasures  of  the  British  Museum.  The 
highly  conventional  manner  in  which  the  artist  has  adapted  horns,  tusks  and 
trunk  to  serve  his  purpose,  shows  power  of  imagination  and  a  fSncility  of 
execution  which  even  now  could  only  be  acquired  by  long  experience. 
Figure  3  represents  some  fantastic  animal  with  large  mouth  and  no  teeth. 
It  comes  from  Laugerie  Basse  (Col.  Mass^nat-Girod). 

X.  One  of  the  sculptured  horse-heads  here  represented  is  most  remarkable, 
as  the  original  seems  to  have  been  partially  skinned.  M.  Piette,  writing  in 
1889  {Congris  IntemaHonal^  «te.,  Paris,  p.  159),  makes  the  following  state- 
ment : — **  L'homme  a  toigours  en  Tamour  du  beau.  .  .  .  Pour  se  perfectionner 
dans  Part  de  repr^senter  le  vivant,  les  artistes  du  Mas  d'Azil  sculptaient 
Tecorche  et  le  squelette."  Also  M.  Cartailhac  {La  France  Frehidorique,  p. 
70)  thus  notices  the  above  piece  of  sculpture  : — "  Le  relief  de  la  t^te  en  partie 
decham^e  est  tout  k  fait  ^tonnant  line  t^te  isoUe,  de  la  meme  grotte,  est 
^galment  figur^  sans  le  peau.  De  tels  ouvrages  donnent  k  Part  de  l*%e  du 
renne  un  aspect  inattendu.  Les  d^ouvertes  rentes  nous  ont  appris  que  cet 
art  connut  la  fantaisie." 

XI.  Bison  and  two  reindeer  painted  in  ochre  on  the  walls  of  the  Orotte  de 
FoTU-de-OaumCf  reduced  from  illustrations  by  MM.  Capitan  and  Breuil  (Bevue 
de  r£cole  d^Anthrapologie,  July  1902,  pi.  ii.). 


{Issued  separately  February  13,  1904.) 


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Proc,  Rify,  Sitcij.  of  Edin.] 


[Vol.  XXV. 


Plate  I. 


Flint  iiiipleiiient — 'coup  «lc  poing'  -from  riveiMliifr  gravels  ({). 
Dk  Munro. 


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:  Proc.  Roy,  Socy.  of  Edin.]  [Vol.  XXV. 

:•  Pl.ATK   II. 


Objects  illuHtr.itiiig  flint  indiistry  anion*,'  tin-  Civcnicn  of  Fmnco  (\). 
Vr  Munko, 

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Proc,  Boy.  Soey.  of  Edin.]  [Vol.  XXV. 

Plate  III. 


Weapons  and  ornaments  made  of  bom*,  teeth,  deer-hoiu,  ivoiy  and  sliells  {h). 
Vr  Munko. 


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/Voc  Roy,  Socy.  of  Edin,]  [Vol.  XXV. 


0 
^ 


o 


I  ^ 


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Ptoc.  Roy.  Socy.  of  Edin.] 


[Vol.  XXV. 


2i 


J 


< 

2u 


5b 


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Proc.  Roy.  Sory.  of  Edin,] 


[Vol.  XXV. 


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Proc,  Ritij.  Sijry.  of  Edin.] 


[Vo\.  XXV. 


r^ 


> 

'A 

< 

5U 


5  1 


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Froc.  Roy.  Socy.  of  Ed  in.']  [Vol.  XXV. 


Plate  VIII. 


Fio.  1. — Reindeer  on  a  portion  of  reindeer-horn  (|) 


Fig.  2.  -Drawing  of  h  horse  on  portion  of  reindm'r-horn  (|). 


Fic;s.  3,  4,  5. — A  perforated  shell  and  hanging  ornaments  made  of  coal  {\). 


Engraved  figures  of  animals  and  ornaments  from  the  K^Hslerloch  Cave,  ncNir 
SchafThausen.     (After  Conrad  Merk. ) 


Pr  Munko, 


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1*ror.  Jioif.  Socy.  of  Etlin.] 


[Vol.  XXV. 


Platk  IX. 


Fig.  1.  — Handle  of  a  dagj<er  sculptured  into  the  form  of  a  reiudeer. 
Rock-shelter  of  Bruuiquel  (a). 


Fig.  2. — Maiumoth  sculptured  in  reindeer-horn.     Rock-shelter  of  Bruuiquel  ('^). 


Fkj.  3. — Uuknowu  animal  sculptured  in  reindeer-horn.     Laugeiic  Basse  {{). 
Animals  sculptured  in  ivory  and  horn. 

Dr  MrsRO. 


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Vn^.  Hoy.  Svcy.  of  Klin.]  t^'«l.  >^'XV. 

Plate  X 


Portion  of  reindeor-liorn  from  Mas  d'Azil,  scnl|(tiirf(i  into  two  liorse-heads 
(Col.  Piette).     After  E.  Cartailhac — L((  Fram-e  Preldstoriqur. 

Dli    MUNKO. 


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Proc.  Roy.  Socy.  of  Eilin.]  [Vol.  XXV. 

Plate  XI. 


Fio.  1. — BUon  i>aiijted  in  oclire. 


Fig.  2. — Reindeer  paitly  painted  and  partly  incised. 

Specimens  of  painted  animals  from  the  Cave  of  Foiit-de  Gaume,  after  MM. 
Capitan  and  Breuil. 


Vll  Ml7NR0. 


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To  prevent  delay,   auihors  residing  abroad  should  appoint  some  one 
rending  in  this  country  to  correct  their  proofs. 

4.  Additions  to  a  Paper  after  it  has  been  finally  handed  in  for 
publication,  if  accepted  by  the  Council,  will  be  treated  and  dated  as 
separate  communications,  and  may,  or  may  not,  be  printed  immediately 
after  the  original  paper. 

5.  Brief  Abstracts  op  Transactions  Papers  will  be  published  in 
the  Proceedings,  provided  they  are  sent  along  with  the  original  paper. 

6.  Separatb  Issue  op  Reprints;  Author's  Free  and  Additional 
Gonss. — As  soon  as  the  final  revise  of  a  Transactions  paper  has  been 
retained,  or  as  soon  as  the  sheet  in  which  the  last  part  of  a  Proceedings 
paper  app^u»  is  ready  for  press,  a  certain  number  of  separate  copies  or 
reprints,  in  covers  bearing  the  title  of  the  paper  and  the  name  of  the 
author,  are  printed  off  and  placed  on  sale.  The  date  of  such  separate 
pablication  will  be  printed  on  each  paper. 

The  author  receives  fifty  of  these  reprints  free,  and  may  have  any 
reasonable  number  of  additional  copies  at  a  fixed  scale  of  prices  which 
will  be  furnished  by  the  printer,  who  will  charge  him  with  the  cost. 
To  prevent  disappointment,  especially  if  the  paper  contains  plates, 
the  author  should,  immediately  after,  receiving  his  first  proof,  notify 
io  the  printer  the  number  of  additional  copies  required. 

7.  Index  Slips. — In  order  to  facilitate  the  compilation  of  Subject 
Indices,  and  to  secure  that  due  attention  to  the  important  points  in  a 
paper  shall  be  given  in  General  Catalogues  of  Scientific  Literature  and 
in  Abstracts  by  Periodicals,  every  author  is  requested  to  return  to  the 
Secretary  along  with  his  final  proof  a  brief  index  (on  the  model  given 
below),  of  the  points  in  it  which  he  considers  new  or  important.  These 
indices  will  be  edited  by  the  Secretary,  and  incorporated  in  Separate 
Index  Slips,  to  be  issued  with  each  part  of  the  Proceedings  and 
Tiinsactions. 


MODEL  INDEX. 

Sehafer,  E.  A. — On  the  Existence  within  the  Liver  Cells  of  Channels  which  can 
be  directly  injected  from  the  Blood- vessels.    Proc.  Roy.  Soc.  Edin.,  vol      , 
1902,  pp. 
Cdb,  Liver, — Intra-oellnlar  Canaliculi  in. 

R  A.  Schafer.    Proc  Roy.  Soc.  Edin.,  vol.        ,  1902,  pp. 
liver, — ^Injection  within  Cells  of. 

E.  A.  Schafer.    Proc.  Roy.  Soc.  Edin.,  vol.  1902,  pp. 


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IV  CONTENTS. 

PAGE 

Physico-Chemical  Investigations  in  the  Amide  Group.  By 
Charles  K^Fawsitt,  Ph.D.,  B.Sc.  (Ediu.  and  Lond.). 
Communicated  by  Professor  Crum  Brown,       .  51 

(Issued  separately  February  6,  1904.) 

The  Theory  of  General  Determinants  in  the  Hisyrical 
Order  of  Development  up  to  1846.  By  Thomas 
MuiR,  LLD.,  ......         61 

(Issued  separately  Fehnuiry  \2i  \^0i,)  ^    ^ 

Man  as  Artist  and  Sportsman  in  the  Palaeolithic  Period. 
By  Robert  Monro,  M. A.,  M.D.,  LL.D.    (With  Eleven 
Plates),  ......         92 

(Issued  separately  Febrtuiry  18,  1904.) 


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PROCEEDINGS 


OF  THE 


ROYAL  SOCIETY  OF  EDINBURGH. 

SESSION  1903-4. 


No.  n.]  VOL.    X  XV.  [PP  129-192. 


CONTENTS. 


PAQB 


The  Theory  of  Continuants  in  the  Historical  Order  of  its 

Development  up  to  1870.      By  Thomas  Muir,  LLD.,       129 
{Issued  separately  February  26,  1904.) 

On  the  Origin  of  the  Epiphysis  Cerehri  as  a  Bilateral 
Structure  in  the  Chick.      By  John  Cameron,  M.B. 
(Ediu.),  M.K.C.S.  (Eng.),   Carnegie   Fellow,  Demon- 
strator of  Anatomy,  United  College,  University  of  St 
Andrews.       Communicated  by  Dr  W.  G.  Aitchison 
Robertson,     .  .  .  .  .  .160 

{Issued  separately  March  17,  1904.) 

Theorem  regarding  the   Orthogonal   Transformation  of  a 

Quadric.     By  Thomas  MriR,  LL.D.,  .  .  .168 

{Issued  separately  March  17,  1904.) 

[CarUinued  on  page  iv  of  Cover, 


^   EDINBURGH: 


Published  by  ROBERT  GRANT  &  SON,  107  Princes  Sireet,  and 
WILLIAMS  k  NORGATE,  14  Henrietta  Street,  Covent  Garden,  London. 


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REGULATIONS  REGARDING  THE  PUBLICATION  OF 
PAPERS  IN  THE  PROCEEDINGS  AND  TRANS- 
ACTIONS OF  THE  SOCIETY. 

The  Council  beg  to  direct  the  attention  of  authors  of  communications  to 
the  Society  to  the  following  Regulations,  which  have  been  drawn  up  in 
order  to  accelerate  the  publication  of  the  Proceedings  and  Transactions, 
and  to  utilise  as  widely  and  as  fairly  as  possible  the  funds  which  the 
Society  devotes  to  the  publication  of  Scientific  and  Literary  Researches. 

1.  Manuscript  of  Papers. — As  soon  as  any  paper  has  been  passed 
for  publication,  either  in  its  original  or  in  any  altered  form,  and  has  been 
made  ready  for  publication  by  the  author,  it  is  sent  to  the  printer, 
whether  it  has  been  read  or  not. 

The  *  copy '  should  be  written  on  large  sheets  of  paper,  on  one  side 
only,  and  the  pages  should  be  clearly  numbered.  The  MS.  must  be 
easily  legible,  preferably  typewritten,  and  must  be  absolutely  in  its  final 
form  for  printing ;  so  that  corrections  in  proof  shall  be  as  few  as  possible, 
:ind  shall  not  cause  overrunning  in  the  lines  or  pages  of  the  proof.  All 
tables  of  contents,  references  to  plates  or  illustrations  in  the  text,  etc., 
must  be  in  their  proper  places,  with  the  page  numbers  left  blank ;  and 
spaces  must  be  indicated  for  the  insertion  of  illustrations  that  are  to 
appear  in  the  text. 

2.  Illustrations. — All  illustrations  must  be  drawn  in  a  form  im- 
mediately suitable  for  reproduction  j  and  such  illustrations  as  can  be 
reproduced  by  photographic  processes  should,  so  far  as  possible,  be 
preferred.  Drawings  to  be  reproduced  as  line  blocks  should  be  made 
with  Indian  ink  (deadened  with  yellow  if  of  bluish  tone),  preferably  on 
fine  white  bristol  board,  free  from  folds  or  creases;  smooth,  clean  lines 
or  sharp  dots,  but  no  washes  or  colours  should  be  used.  If  the  drawings 
are  done  on  a  large  scale,  to  be  afterwards  reduced  by  photography,  any 
lettering  or  other  legend  must  be  on  a  corresponding  scale. 

If  an  author  finds  it  inconvenient  to  furnish  such  drawings,  the  Society 
will  have  the  figures  re-drawn  at  his  expense ;  but  this  will  cause  delay. 

When  the  illustrations  are  to  form  plates,  a  scheme  for  the  arrange- 
ment of  the  figures  (in  quarto  plates  for  the  Transactions,  in  octavo  for 
the  Proceedings)  must  be  given,  and  numbering  and  lettering  indicated. 

3.  Proofs. — In  general,  a  first  proof  and  a  revise  of  each  paper  will 
l)e  sent  to  the  author,  whose  address  should  be  indicated  on  the  MS. 
If  further  proofs  are  required,  owing  to  corrections  or  alterations  for 
which  the  printer  is  not  responsible,  the  expense  of  such  proofs  and 
corrections  will  be  charged  against  the  author. 

All  proofs  must,  if  possible,  be  returned  within  one  week,  addressed  to 
The  Secret  art/ y  Royal  Society y  MoumJ,  Edinburgh,  and  not  to  the  printer. 

[Continued  on  jxige  iii  ofCorer, 


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1908-4.]        Dr  Muir  on  the  Theory  of  CofUinuants.  129 


The  Theory  of  Ck>ntiniiaiit0  in  the  Historical  Order  of  its 
Development  up  to  1870.    By  Thomas  Muir,  LL.D. 

(MS.  recdred  October  S,  1908.     Read  Norember  2, 1908.) 

The  more  or  less  disguised  use  of  continued  fractions  has  been 
traced  back  to  the  publication  of  Bombelli's  Algebra  in  1572, 
eighty-four  years,  that  is  to  say,  before  the  pubUcation  of  Wallis' 
ArWimetiea  Infinitorum^  in  which  Brouncker's  discovery  was 
announced  and  the  fractions  explicitly  expressed.*  The  study  of 
the  numerators  and  denominators  of  the  convergents  viewed  as 
functions  of  the  partial  denominators  was  first  seriously  under- 
taken by  Euler  in  his  Specimen  Algorithmi  Singtdarie  of  the  year 
1764,  in  which  denoting  by 


the  convergents  to 


a  +  --        , 

c  + 


he  established  a  long  series  of  identities,  such  as 

(a,  6,  c,  d,  .  .  .  )-a(&,  c,d,...  )  +  (c,  rf,  .  .  .) 
(a,  &,  c,  .  .  .  Z)  =  (Z,  ...,(;,  ^  a), 
(a,6)(6,c)-(5)(a,6,c)  =  l, 
(a,  b,  e,){d,  e,f)-{a,  b,  c,  d,  «,/)=  -(a,  b)(e,f). 


The  study  was  pursued  by  Hindenburg  and  his  followers  during 
the  last  twenty  years  of  the  eighteenth  century,  but  not  with  any 
great  profit;  and,  although  in  the  first  half  of  the  nineteenth 
century  considerable  attention  was  given  to  the  theory  of  con- 
tinued fractions  as  a  whole,  little  advance  was  made  in  elucidating 

*  For  the  early  history  see  Favaro's  Notueie  stcriche  auUe  frazioni  continue 
cUU  aeeolo  decimoUreo  al  dedmoaeUimo  published  in  vol.  viL  of  Boncom- 
pagni's  Bollettino :  and  as  regards  Bombelli  see  a  paper  by  O.  Wertheim  in 
the  AbJutndl.  zur  Oeseh,  d.  Math,,  viii.  pp.  147-160. 

PBGC.  ROY.  SOC.  BDIN. — VOL.  XXV.  9 


ljr_ 


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130  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinbwrgh,         [i 

the  properties  of  the  functions  referred  to.*  Their  connection 
with  determinants,  after  the  awakening  of  interest  in  the  latter 
about  1841,  was  sure  sooner  or  later  to  be  detected :  there  is  no 
evidence,  however,  of  the  discovery  having  been  made  before  the 
year  1853. 

Sylvkstbb,  J.  J.  (1853,  May  13). 

[On  a  remarkable  modification  of  Sturm's  theorem.     PhUos, 
Mag.  (4),  v.  pp.  446-457.] 

The  mention  of  Sturm's  theorem  in  the  title  of  a  paper  renders 
not  improbable  the  occurrence  therein  of  matter  connected  with 
continued  fractions.  Especially  likely  is  this  in  the  case  of  a 
writer  like  Sylvester  when  in  a  characteristic  mood ;  and,  assuredly, 
the  present  communication  is  in  structure,  style,  and  originality 
redolent  of  its  author.  It  must  have  been  written  in  the  white 
heat  of  discovery.  The  main  part  of  it  consists  of  six  pages: 
this  is  followed  by  a  "  Remark ''  a  page  and  a  quarter  long ;  then 
comes  a  "  Postscript ''  of  three  and  a  half  pages ;  and  finally  a 
small-page  footnote  as  long  as  the  ''  Remark." 

It  is  the  postscript  which  particularly  concerns  us.  It  begins 
thus : — 

"Suppose   that  we  have  any  series  of  terms,    i/^,  «2>   ^s» 

.  .  .  ,  t/„,  where 

<^i  =  Ai,     u^  =  A^A^-\,    W3  =  AiA2A3-Ai-A3,     .  .  . 

and  in  general 

«<  =  A<tt<_i-w<_,, 

then  1*1 ,  «*2 ,  Wg ,  .  .  .  ,  w„  will  be  the  successive  principal 
coaxal  determinants  of  a  symmetrical  matrix.  Thus  suppose 
n  =  5 ;  if  we  write  down  the  matrix 


Ai 

1 

0 

0 

0 

1 

A, 

1 

0 

0 

0 

1 

As 

1 

0 

0 

0 

1 

A4 

1 

0 

0 

0 

1 

A5 

*  The  state  of  the  theory  in  1833  can  best  be  gathered  from  Stern's 
monograph  published  in  vol.  x.  of  CrelWs  Journal, 


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1903-4.]        Dr  Muir  on  the  Theory  of  Continuants^ 


131 


(the  mode  of  fonnation  of  which  is  self-apparent),  these 
successive  coaxal  determinants  will  he 


1,    Ai, 


A,     1 

1 

A,     1      0 

> 

Ai     1      0      0 

1     A, 

1     Aj     1 

1     A,     1       0 

0      1     A, 

0      1     A,     1 

0      0      1     A, 

etc., 


t.e. 


1 ,  Aj ,  AjA2  -  1 ,  AjAjAj  —  Aj  —  A3 , 

•^1  AjAjA^Aj  —  A^A2Ag  —  AjA^Ag  —  AgA^A^  —  A^A2A3 

+  A5  +  A8  +  A1. 

It  is  proper  to  introduce  the  unit  hecause  it  is,  in  fact,  the 
value  of  a  determinant  of  zero  places,  as  I  have  observed 
elsewhere." 

After  using  this  as  an  aid  to  prove  his  proposition  regarding 
Sturm's  theorem,  he  returns  to  his  new  determinant  in  the 
following  words: — 

"I  may  conclude  with  noticing  that  the  determinative 
[determinantall]  form  of  exhibiting  the  successive  con- 
vergents  to  an  improper  continued  fraction  affords  an 
instantaneous  demonstration  of  the  equation  which  connects 
any  two  consecutive  such  convergents  as 


2^'     and      2-' 


D... 


D. 


viz.       N,.D,.,-N<_,D<=1. 


For  if  we  construct  the  matrix  which  for  greater  simplicity 
I  limit  to  five  lines  and  columns, 


A 

1 

0 

0 

0 

1 

B 

1 

0 

0 

0 

1 

C 

1 

0 

0 

0 

1 

D 

1 

0 

0 

0 

1 

E 

and  represent  umbrally  as 


*2       ""8       **4       '*6 

^1     h     h     h     h> 


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1 32  Proceedings  of  R&ycd  Society  of  Edivbu/rgh.         [smb. 

and  if,  by  way  of  example,  we  take  the  fourth  and  fifth  con- 
vergents,  these  will  be  in  the  umbral  notation  represented  by 


t*         ^  5;»  ?*  ^ 

a,    Oj 

\       *2 

<h    <»4 

Oj     a^    ci^    a^    (tr, 

h      ^2      ^8      ^4      ''& 

respectively. 

Hence 

N,D,-N,Dj 

= 

55 

^4  h 

6,  ftj  6^ 

h    »8    ^ 

?!     -     ?«   ^«   ^*     X     ?2   ?» 

6i         6j  6j  64         b^  6g 

04  "e  "1 . 

= 

6,         ^2  6j  b^  b^     62  ^3 

»4    ftl 

= 

11 

''2    *$    *4 

ft' 

= 

ftj    ft,    ft^ 

ft* 

- 

1   B 
0    1 

1    0 

C   1    "" 

1    0    0 
B    1    0 

0 
0 

0   0 

1   D 

1    C    1 

0 

0    0 

0    1 

0    1    D 

1, 

= 

1      X 

1   =   1, 

as  was  to  be 

proved.     And  the  demonstration  is 

evidently 

general  in  its  nature." 

In 

regard 

to  this  there  has  to  be  noted,  first,  the  use  of 

«s 

a$    «4 

h 

6s     h 

when  it  would  have  been  equally  effectiye  to  use 

2      3      4 

2      3      4; 
and,  second,  the  use  of  a  theorem  for  expressing  the  product  of  a 
five-line    determinant    and   one   of  its  secondary   minors  as  an 
aggregate  of  products  of  pairs  of  four-line  determinants. 

Following  on  this  comes  the  assertion  that 

**"We  may  treat  a  proper  continued  fraction  [i.e.  vnth  positive 
imit  numerators]  in  precisely  the  same  manner,  substituting 
throughout    ^  -  1  in  place  of  1  in  the  generating  matrix. 


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1908-4.]        Dr  Muir  on  the  Theory  of  Continuants.  133 

and  we  shall  thus,  by  the  same  process  as  has  been  applied 
to  improper  continued  fractions,  obtain 

N^,D,  -  NA+i  =  (  ^^^7x  (  ^3T)* 
=  (-l)V' 

This  would  seem  to  imply  that  as  yet  Sylvester  had  not  observed 
that  an  alternative  mode  of  representation  was  obtainable  by 
merely  changing  the  sign  of  the  units  on  one  side  of  the  diagonal. 
The  footnote  contains  two  additional  observations,  the  first 
being  to  the  effect  that  the  new  mode  of  representation 

"  gives  an  immediate  and  visible  proof  of  the  simple  and  elegant 
rule  for  forming  any  such  numerators  or  denominators  by 
means  of  the  principal  terms  [term  f|  in  each ;  the  rule,  I  mean, 
according  to  which  the  i^^  denominator  may  be  formed  from 

(?i>  ?2»  •  •  •  >  S'*  being  the  successive  quotients)  and  the  i^ 
numerator  from 

^8^4  •   •   •  ?< 

by  leaving  out  from  the  above  products  respectively  any 
pair  or  any  number  of  pairs  of  consecutive  quotients  as  ^p^p+i. 
For  instance,  from  q^q^^q^q^  by  leaving  out  q^q^ ,  q^q^ ,  q^q^ 
and  q^f^  we  obtain 

and  by  leaving  out  q^q^-q^^^  MsMs »  ^^z^db  ^«  obtain 

^6  +  S's  +  3i ; 
so  that  the  total  denominator  becomes 

and  in  like  manner  the  numerator  of  the  same  convergent  is 
r,  ^    1    ^    1    ^    1    ^       1       ) 

M«?4?6  ^    1    +    +   +    +  f 

i*e. 

qa^i^i  +  Mft  +  ^^5  +  Ms  +  1  •" 

The  "  rule "  here  spoken  of  is  that  enunciated   for  the   more 
general  case  of 

3 


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134  Proceedings  of  Boydl  Society  of  £dinbu/rgh.  [i 

in  Stem's  Theorie  der  Kettenbruche,  the  fourth  section  of  which  is 
given  up  to  the  consideration  of  such  rules  {OreUe^s  Joum,,  z«  pp. 
4-7). 

The  other  observation  is  to  the  effect  that 

"  every  progression  of  terms  constructed  in  conformity  with 

the  equation 

may  be  represented  as  an  ascending  series  of  principal  coaxal 
determinants  to  a  common  matrix.  Thus  if  each  term  in 
such  progression  is  to  be  made  a  linear  function  of  the  three 
preceding  terms,  it  will  be  representable  by  means  of  the 
matrix 


A 

B 

C" 

0 

0 

1 

A' 

B" 

C" 

0 

0 

1 

A" 

B'" 

C"" 

0 

0 

1 

A" 

B"" 

0 

0 

0 

1 

A"" 

indefinitely  continued,  which  gives  the  terms 

1,    A,    AA'-B,     AA'A"-BA"-AB"  +  C" *• 

This  exhausts  the  paper  so  far  as  determinants  are  concerned: 
the  results  announced  in  it,  one  can  readily  own,  were  such  as 
fairly  to  entitle  the  enthusiastic  author  to  express  his  belief  that 
*'  the  introduction  of  the  method  of  determinants  into  the  algorithm 
of  continued  fractions  cannot  fail  to  have  an  important  bearing 
upon  the  future  treatment  and  development  of  the  theory  of 
numbers." 

Spottiswoodb,  W.  (1853,  August).* 

[Elementary  theorems  relating  to  determinants.  Second  edition, 
rewritten  and  much  enlarged  by  the  author.  Orett^s 
Joum.,  U.  (1856)  pp.  209-271,  328-381.] 

Save  the  utilisation  of  the  fact  that  the  denominator  of  any 
convergent  of  the  continued  fraction 

*  This  is  the  author's  date  at  the  end  of  the  paper  (p.  381).  The  first  two 
parts  of  the  volume,  however,  are  dated  1855,  and  the  remaining  two  1856. 


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1903-4.]        Dr  Muir  on  the  Theory  of  Continuants. 


135 


is  the  differential-quotient  of  the  numerator,  Spottiswoode  did 
nothing  but  report  the  fundamental  result  reached  by  Sylvester. 
The  full  passage  (p.  374)  is  as  follows : — 
•*  The  improper  continued  fraction 


where 


1 

A- 

i-i 

-k^^ 

7  - 

A    1 

0 

...00 

1     B 

1 

...00 

0    1 

c 

...00 

0    0 

0 

...Ml 

0    0 

0 

...IN 

in  which  any  number  of  rows  may  be  taken  at  pleasure,  and 
the  formula  will  give  the  corresponding  convergent  fraction. 
The  same  holds  good  for  the  continued  fraction 


^+¥  +  - 


if  we  write 


1 
B 

1 


0 

1 

c 


Sylvbstbr,  J.  J.  (1853,  Sept.). 

[On  a  fundamental  rule  in  the  algorithm  of  continued  fractions. 
Philos.  Mag,  (4),  vi.  pp.  297-299.] 

Without  any  reference  to  his  previous  paper  on  the  subject 
Sylvester  here  announces  that  if 

(Oj,  Og,  .  .  .  ,  a<) 
be  the  denominator  of  the  f^  convergent  to 

1  1    , 


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136  Proceedings  of  Roycd  Society  of  Edinbv/rgh.         [i 

then 

+  («1  >  •  •  •  >  «m-l)(«m+2  »  •  •  -I  «fii+*)» 

— a  possibly  new  result  which  he  considers  *'the  fundamental 
theorem  in  the  theory  of  continued  fractions."  This,  he  says,  is 
an  immediate  consequence  of  the  fact  that  (o^ ,  .  .  .  ,  0^+^)  can 


be  expressed  as  a  determinant,  all  that  is  farther  necessary  being 
the  application  of  the  "  well-known  simple  rule  for  the  decomposi- 
tion of  determinants."    Thus,  e.g.,  the  determinant 

a    1 

-1     b    1 

-I     c     1 

-1     d    1 

-1     e 

1 

-1 

/ 

is  obviously  decomposable  into 

a     1 
-1     6    1 
-1     c 

X        d     1              + 
-1     e     1 
-1     / 

a     1      X         el 
-1     b             -1    /, 

or  into 

alxel                 +ax<21 

-1     h 

-1     d    I 

-1     e    1 

or  into 

-1      e     1 
-1     / 

-1    /. 

a       X 

6     1                        + 

c     1 

-1     e    1 

-1     d    1 

-1     d     1 

-1     e     1 

-lei 

-1     /. 

-1     / 

Following  this  is  what  is  called  "  Corollary  1.  "  viz., 

-  (  -  r(am-M«m+i-i ...  to  t  - 1  terms), 

its  connection  with  the  expression  for  the  difference  of  two  con- 
vergents  being  illustrated  by  the  instances  t  ^^  1,  2,  3,  4,  .  .  . 


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1908-4.]        Dr  Muir  on  the  Theory  of  Continuants. 
The  next  "coroUaiy,"  viz., 


137 


*P+/J 


')(«!,. 


*P  >  ^P+1 » 


(«!>•.•>  «p>  «p+i I  •  •  • ,  «p+a)(«i » • .  •  >  «pi  «p+i  > 
'  (  -  )^{(«P+l>  •  •  •  »«P+/)(«|M-1>  •  •  • .«»»+»)  -  («p+i.  •  • 


••»«P+*)    ' 
•  • » «P+0 
>^p-w)(^P+i> ' 


>«P+*)} 


is  clearly  incorrect,  •  it  being  impossible  for  the  value  of  the  left- 
hand  side  to  be  independent  of  the  elements  Oj,  Og,  .  .  .  ,  Op. 
Further,  as  the  author  gives  no  accompanying  word  of  comment, 
the  difficulty  of  suggesting  the  true  theorem  is  increased.  A 
"  sulHsoroUary  "  is  appended  dealing  with  the  case  where  all  the 
0*8  are  equal,  and  leading  up,  nob  without  some  misprints  or 
inaccuracies,  to  a  theorem  of  Euler^s  quoted  from  the  NouveUes 
Annates  de  Math.,  v.  (Sept.  1851)  pp.  357-358,  to  the  effect  that 
if  T^+i—aT«-&Tn_i  be  the  generating  equation  of  a  recurrent 
series,  then 


^w+i 


aT.T^^.-i-CT, 


is  a  constant  with  respect  to  n.     Of  course  the  more  natural  form 
of  this  expression  is 


Tn-n    ~   ^n^n-k^^ 


the  numerator  of  which  being 


'•"+1 


*•*»+! 


is  successively  transformable  by  means  of  the  recursion-formula 
into 


■•»H-1 


■■•-l 


J2I  T..1    T„ 


6« 


Tn-2      T„_j 
Tn-j      T„«2 


SO  that  the  constant  in  question  is 

T      T    I 
-T      T 

This,  however,  Sylvester  does  not  show.* 

*  An  interesting  extension  of  this  is  given  by  Brioschi  in  the  NouveUes 
AnmaUi  d$  Matk.,  lav.  (Jan.  1854)  p.  20.  i 


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138  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edvrimrgh,  [i 

Finally,  and  to  more  purpose,  it  is  noted  that  if  we  pass  from 
(<ii  >  %  9  •  •  •  9  a<)  to  the  readily-suggested  extension 


the  corresponding  fundamental  theorem  is 


^      »»i »»H^      /      \    Wj  n<_,  /  \       n<+i fii+j        / 

/     ^1 ^<-s      \  /        ^<+i h-^i         \ 

- Z<ni  wij,  m,, . . . ,  ?»<^x  j(  ^i+ii  ^<+si  •  •  •  >  »»<-h/+i  ) 


Sylvbstbb,  J.  J.  (1853,  Oct,  Nov.). 

[On  a  theory  of  the  syzygetic  relations  of  two  rational  integral 
functions,  comprising  an  application  to  the  theory  of 
Sturm's  functions,  and  that  of  the  greatest  algebraical 
common  measure.  PhU.  Trans.  Boy,  Soc  London^  cxliii. 
pp.  407-548.] 

Although  this  lengthy  memoir  in  its  original  form  bears  date 
"  16th  June  1853,"  it  is  the  equally  lengthy  "supplements"  added 
later  while  passing  through  the  press  that  claim  attention  in  the 
present  connection.  In  the  first  of  these  (§  L,  p.  474)  the  de- 
nominator of  the  fraction 

1      1 

-1 

is  denoted  by  [^^ ,  gg  >  •  •  •  >  Qn\i  and  termed  a  "  cumulant,"  and 
throughout  the  later  portion  of  the  paper  this  name  constantly 
recurs.      It    is    not^    however,    until    we    come  to   the  second 


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1903-4.]        Dr  Muir  on  the  Theory  of  CorUintiants,  139 

"  sapplement "  that  anything  apparently  new  in  substance  is  met 

with.    There  in  §  a  (p.  497)  the  following  lemma  occurs : — 

"  The  roots  of  the  cumulant  bi ,  ft ,  .  •  •  >  yj  in  which 
each  element  is  a  linear  function  of  os,  and  wherein  the 
coefficient  of  x  for  each  element  has  the  like  sign,  are  all 
real:  and  between  every  two  of  such  roots  is  contained  a 
root  of  the  cumulant  bi  i  ft ,  .  .  .  ,  ^i-i]  and  ex  eonverso  a 
root  of  the  cumulant  [ft ,  ft »  .  .  .  ,  ^<] :  and  (as  an  evident 
corollary)  for  all  values  of  f  and  f  intermediate  between  1 
and  1  the  greatest  root  of  [^^ ,  ft ,  .  .  .  ,  <^J  will  be  greater, 
and  the  least  root  of  the  same  will  be  less  than  the  greatest 
and  least  roots  respectively  of  [ft ,  ft+j ,  .  .  .  ,  ft.i ,  ft*]." 

Even  this,  however,  may  be  placed  under  the  well-known  theorem 

regarding  the  roots  of  the  equation 


=   0 


which  had  been  enunciated  by  Cauchy  in  1829.* 

The  next  noteworthy  result  occupies  §  i.    (p.    602).    As  a 
preparation  for  it  the  theorem 

[Oj,  ag, . . . ,  a«,  6i,  2>2, . . . ,  *n]  =  [a^  ag, . . . ,  aj[6i,  ij, . . . ,  K] 

-  [a^,  Oj, . . . ,  aw_i][ft2,  65, ... ,  6J 

may  be  recalled,  the  group  of  elements  on  the  left  being  now 
viewed  as  consisting  of  two  sub-groups.  This  theorem  Sylvester 
writes  in  the  form 

[o,oj  =  [o,][oj  -  [0',]['0J 

and  he  succeeds  in  including  in  it  a  general  theorem,  not  explicitly 
formulated,  in  which  the  number  of  groups  is  »,  the  next  two 
cases  being 

[0,0,0,]  =  [OilMM 

-  [o'i]['oJ["3]  -  ["J[o'J['Os]  +  [o'lro'JC'Osl 

*  V.  The  theory  of  orthogonants  ...   in   Proc,  Roy,   Soc   Sdinhu/rgh, 
xziT.  p.  261. 


a,i-ar 

«1S 

«18       •   • 

«12 

ajs-x 

«2S        •    • 

«1S 

<hs 

Ojs-a;  .  . 

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X4(>  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edvnbmgh.  [« 

and 

[n,o,n,oj-[oj[o,][oj[oj 

-  [0'ir«2][0s][0j  -  [Oi][0'J['OJ[OJ  -  [0j[0J[0'a]['O4] 

+ [o'i]['o' J['«,][«J + [«'i]['« Jo'slL'oJ + [Oi][n'2]['o'8]['o J 
-[o'J['o'J'n'J['oJ- 

The  general  theorem  is  described  as  giving  an   expression  for 
[OjOj  .  .  .  O J  in  terms  of 


ro*-i],['oo 


that  is  to  say,  in  terms  of  all  the  unaltered  O's,  all  the  curtailed 
O's  except  the  last,  all  the  beheaded  O's  except  the  first,  and  all 
the  "doubly-apocopated"  O's  except  the  first  and  the  last;  and  it 
is  pointed  out  that  the  number  of  products  (or  terms)  in  the  ex- 
pansion is  2*"^  "  separable  into  i  alternately  positive  and  negative 
groups  containing  respectively  1,  (i-1),  K*-^)(*~2)»  •  •  •  > 
f  - 1,  1  products."  Further,  it  is  noted  that  "  in  every  one  of  the 
above  groups  forming  a  product  the  accents  enter  in  pairs  and 
between*  contiguous  factors,  it  being  a  condition  that  if  any  O 
have  an  accent  on  the  right  the  next  O  must  have  one  on  the  left^ 
and  if  it  have  one  on  the  left  the  preceding  O  must  have  an 
accent  on  the  right,  and  the  number  of  pairs  of  accents  goes  on 
increasing  in  each  group  from  0  to  t  -  1." 

In  a  footnote  the  case  where  each  O  has  only  one  element,  and 
where,  therefore,  each  singly-accented  O  becomes  1,  and  each 
doubly-acceuted  O  vanishes,  is  stated  to  be  identical  with  the 
"rule" 

[oj ,  Oj,  .  .  .  ,  a<]  =  OyO^ . . .  a<  -  ^——  .  a^a^ . . .  Oi 


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1908-4.]        Dr  Muir  on  the  jTheory  of  Continuants,  14 1 


Sylve^tbb,  J.  J.  (1854,  August). 

[Th^or^e   sur   les    determinants    de   M.    Sylvester. 
Annalea  de  Math,^  xiii.  p.  305.] 

This  communication  in  its  entirety  is  as  follows : — 
"  Soient  les  determinants 

A, 


Nouv, 


X.     1 

X 

1 

0 

X 

1 

0 

0 

1     X. 

2 

X 

2 

3 

X 

2 

0 

0 

1 

A., 

0 
0 

2 
0 

X 

1 

3 

X, 

X 

1 

0 

0 

0 

4 

X 

2 

0 

0 

0 

3 

X 

3 

0 

0 

0 

2 

X 

4 

0 

0 

0 

1 

X, 

.     < 

.     • 

,     , 

la  loi  de  formation  est  ^vidente ;  effectuant,  on  trouve 

X,  X2-1,  X(X«-2«),  (X«-12)(X2-32)^  X(X«-22)(X2-42), 

(\2  -  12)(X«  -  3«)(X2  -  52) ,  X(X2  -  22)(X«  -  42)(\2  -  62) , 
et  ainsi  de  suite." 
That  Sylvester  was  the  author  of  the  implied  theorem  may  be 
considered  proved  by  an  entry  in  the  index  of  the  volume  (v.  p. 
478),  and  by  a  statement  of  Cayley's  in  the  Quarterly  Journal  oj 
MatheniaticSy  ii.  p.  163.  Probably  the  title  of  the  communication 
v^as  prefixed  by  the  editors,  who,  knowing  of  Sylvester's  papers  in 
the  Philosophical  Magazine^  felt  themselves  justified  in  applying 
the  name  **  Sylvester's  determinanta" 


ScHLAPLi,  L.  (Nov.  1855). 

[Reduction  d'une  int^grale  multiple  qui  comprend  Tare  de 
cercle  et  Taire  du  triangle  sph^rique  comme  cas  particuliers. 
Joum,  de  Liouville,  xx.  pp.  359-394.] 

Here  there  appears  the  equation 


A(/i, 


A,ri) 


1    - 


cos^a 


1       - 


COS^jg 

1     - 


__C082f 
1    -  C082i7 


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142  Proceedings  of  Bayal  Society  of  Edinfywrgh.  [i 


where,  in  view  of  the  contents  of  a  subsequent  paper  (see  under 
year  1858),  it  would  seem  that  A(a,jS,  •  •  •  i  ty'^)  was  used  for 

1  cosa 

-  cosa         1         cos)3 
—  cosjS       1 


-  cosf         1         cosi; 
—  cosi;      1 

No  properties,  however,  of  this  determinant  are  given. 


Ramus  (1856,  March). 

[Determinantemes  Anvendelse  til  at  bestemme  hoven  for  de 
convergerende  Broker.  Oversigt  . . .  danake  Vidensk,  Selsk. 
Forhandlinger  . . .  (Kj0benhavn),  pp.  106-119.] 

Ramus'  introduction  consists  in  recalling  the  result  of  the  appli- 
cation of  determinants  to  the  solution  of  a  set  of  linear  equations, 
his  mode  of  stating  the  result  being  that  given  by  Jacobi  in  the 
De  formatione  ...  of  the  year  1841, — that  is  to  say,  he  takes  for 
his  set  of  equations 

V^o  +  <y\  +  «a%  +  • 


and  puts  the  solution  in  the  form 
where 


(cu) 


*  It  is  in  this  mode  of  writing  Aj,  viz.,  with  the  negative  sign,  that  Jaoobi's 
peculiarity  consists.  Not  content  with  removing  from  Rn  the  row  and 
column  in  which  a^  occurs  and  prefixing  to  the  minor  thus  obtained  the  sign- 


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«o 

+ 

exists  the  set  of 

equations 

yo 

-  "hyo 

+  yi 

-  Vo 

-0^1  + 

2/s 

-  ^tUx  - 

«»!'«  + 

ys 

1908-4.]        Dr  Muir  on  the  Theory  of  Gontimuints.  143 

He  then  recalls  the  further  fact  that  if  ^o  >  ^1 »  ^2  >  •  *  •  »  Vn  ^  the 
numerators  of  the  convergents  of  the  continued  fraction 


-\ 
=  0 
=  0 


and  he  thereupon  draws  the  natural  conclusion  that  the  previous 
result  can  be  applied  to  the  determination  oiy^y  yi^y^,  .  .  . ,  ^„ . 
Making  the  necessary  substitution  for  the  u's  and  for  R^  he  of 
course  obtains 

y^  =  a^An^  +  b^A^\ 

A^®,  A^^  being  now  determinants  which  for  want  of  Cayley's 
notation  he  cannot  accurately  specify,  but  which  he  persists  in 
writing  in  the  form 

-  Z  ±«oW  •••<:!.  -  Z±«oSV  •  •  •  C!- 

From  this  result  he  calculates  in  succession  the  values  of  y^,  y^, 
y^j  y^;  but  it  will  readily  be  understood  that  the  process  is  neither 
elegant  nor  short. 

In  the  remainder  of  the  paper  (^  4-9)  no  further  use  of  the 
properties  of  determinants  is  made,  the  contents  of  the  last  ten 
pages  being  such  as  might  appear  in  any  ordinary  exposition  of 
continued  fractions.  First  there  is  established  the  old  "rule"  for 
writing  out  the  value  of  y„,  above  referred  to  as  being  given  by 
Stem.     This  is  followed  by  the  results 


factor  ( - 1)*+*,  he  takes  the  further  step  of  moving  the  row  with  the  index  k 
over  jc- 1  + 1  rows,  thus  arriving  at 

or  course  there  is  at  the  second  step  the  option  of  moving  the  column  with 
the  index  i  over  te-i+1  columns,  and  this  Ramus  does. 


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144  Proceedings  of  Royai  Society  of  Edinhwrgh.  [i 


a+ 


+  i+...(n6'8)"  ^a2  +  46\V  2  J      "V  2  /      /' 

which  by  putting  a^l^h  give  the  number  of  terms  in  Y„, — a 
number  also  obtained  in  the  form 


Cn+J.1    +    Cn+j,8*5    +    C„ 


Anything  else  is  of  small  moment. 


5«+  ...  I 


Caylby,  a.  (1857,  April). 

[On  the  determination  of  the  value  of  a  certain  determinant 
Quart.  Joum,  of  Math.,  ii.  pp.  163-166  ;  or  Collected  MatK 
Papersy  iii.  pp.  120-123.] 

The  determinant  in  question  is  rather  more  general  than  Syl- 
vester's of  the  year  1854  {Nouv.  Annalee  de  Math.^  xiil  p.  305), 

being 

^        1  .       .         . 

X        0        2       . 

X'l    e     3 

.      a;-2    6 


e        ti-1 
x-n+2      $ 

while  the  other  is  obtained  from  this  by  putting  ic  =  n-  1.  De- 
noting his  own  form  by  Un,  Cayley,  with  Sylvester's  results  before 
him,  found 

U,=(6«-l)  -  (x-1), 

Ug  =  6(^-4)   -   3(3!- 2)«, 

U^  =  (^-l)(tf«-9)   -    6(a:-3)(tf'-l)  +   i(x-S)(x-l); 

so  that,  if  he  put  H,  for  the  value  of  IT,  in  Sylvester's  case  (viz., 
when  «  =  «-  1),  he  could  write 

Uj=H2-(a!-l)H, 

U3  =  H,-3(x-2)H, 

U,  =  H«  -  G(x  -  3)H2  +  3{x  -  3)(x  -  1)R^ , 


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1908-4.]        Dr  Muir  on  the  Theory  of  Continuants,  145 

and  thence,  doubtless,  divined  the  generalisation 

U„  =  H^  -  B^i.(a;-n  +  l).H,_,  +  B„,2.(a;-n  +  l)(a--n+3VH„.4  -  . ... 

where 

H,  =  (^  +  n-l)(^  +  n-3)(^  +  »-5) to  n  factors 

and 

n(w-l)(w-2) {n-28+\ 

^n,.-  2*.  12.  3 8 

The  establishment  of  the  truth  of  this  is  all  that  the  paper  is  occu- 
pied with,  the  procedure  being  to  expand  U„  in  terms  of  the  elements 
of  its  last  row  and  their  complementary  minors,  thus  obtaining 

U,   =   ^U„.,    -    (n-l)(x-n  +  2)U.., 
and  thence 

Un+{(n-l)(a'-7*  +  2)  +  (n-2)(a?-n  +  3)-^jU„., 
+   (n-2)(n-3)(a;-n  +  3)(ar-n  +  4)U„_4   -   0, 

and  showing  that  the  above  conjectural  expression  for  U,,  satisfies 
the  latter  equation.  The  process  of  verification  is  troublesome,  and 
was  not  viewed  with  satisfaction  by  Cayley  himself. 

As  a  preliminary  the  coefficients  of  the  H*s  in  the  value  of  U„ 
are  for  shortness*  sake  denoted  by  A„,oi  -  A«,i,  .  .  .  ,  and  for 
the  same  and  an  additional  reason  the  coefficient  of  U„.,  in  the 
ditference-equation  is  denoted  by 

M„,-  |^-(n-2«-l)2l, 

which  is  equivalent  to  putting 

M,^,=  (n-l)(x-n  +  2)   +   (w- 2)(.r-n  +  3)    -    (w-2«-l)l 
The  operation  to  be  performed  being  thus  the  substitution  of 
A^oH„-A,.iH„,2+ +{- VA„.,H„.3.+ 

for  U«  in  the  expression 

XIn  +  [M,M-  {^-(n-2«-l)2|]u,.,  +  (n-2)(7i-3)(aj-7i  +  3)(a:-«  +  4)U. 
PROC.  ROY.  SOC.  BDIN. — VOL.  XXV.  10 


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146  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh.  [siss. 

it  is  readily  seen  that  the  result  will  be  an  aggregate  of  expressions 
like 

+   (n  -  2)(n  -  3)(x  -  n  +  3)(ar  -  n  +  4)A„ .,.,H,_,_2, . 
Now  if  we  bear  in  mind  that  by  definition 

the  second  of  the  three  terms  of  this 

"     '"ln,rA^-2^11n-2-2»     ~     ^n-%^n-Xty 

or,  if  we  write  «  -  1  for  «  in  one  case, 

■•    "~  ^n,«-l'A^-2,»-lH«-2«  ~  A^-2,«ll»i-25 

and  the  third,  by  writing  s  -  2  for  «, 

=    (n  -  2)(n  -  3)(^  -  n  +  ^){x  -  n  +  4)A„_,,.,H,.^ . 
Consequently  the  sum  of  the  three  will  vanish  if 
An,,  -  (M„.,.,A„.2.,_i  +  A„.2.,)  +  (w-2)(n-3)(ic-n  +  3)(a:-/i  +  4)A,_;,_,  =  0, 
and  therefore  if 

B,.Xa--n+l)    -    H„_^,(a--w  +  2^+l) 
-   B„_2.,_iM„.,_i   +   B„.,.,_,(n-2)(n-3)(x-n  +  4)   -   0, 
that  is,  if 

{x  -  n)[B,.,  -  B„_2.,  -  (2n  -  3)B„.,^.i  +  (n  -  2)(n  -  3)B,..,^_,J 

But  this  is  the  case ;  for,  as  Cayley  shows,  both  the  cofactor  of  a;  -  n 
and  the  other  similar  expression  following  it  vanish  identically. 
The  verification  aimed  at  is  thus  attained. 


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1903-4.]        Dr  Muir  on  the  Theory  of  Continuants. 


147 


Painvin  (1858,  February). 

[SuT    un    certain   syst^me    d'^uations    lin^aires.      Joum.  de 
lAoumUe  (2),  iii.  pp.  41-46.] 

The  system  of  equations  referred  to  in  the  title  of  Painvin's 
paper  had  presented  themselves  to  Liouville  in  the  course  of  the 
research  which  led  to  his  '*  M^moire  sur  les  transcendantes  eUip- 
tiques  ..."  {Joum.  de  Liouville  (1),  v.  pp.  441-464).  Painvin's 
reason  for  taking  up  the  subject  was  his  belief  that  one  of 
Liouville's  results  could  be  more  simply  arrived  at  by  the  use  of 
determinants ;  and  in  a  few  lines  of  introduction  he  succeeds  in 
showing  that  the  result  in  question  can  be  viewed  as  merely  the 
resolution  of  the  determinant 

r  a  .  ..... 

n(a-l)        r-1  2a  

(n-l)(a-l)        r-2  3a 

(w-2)(a-l)  r-3    .,. 


...    r  -n+l     na 
a-1      r-n 

into  factors. 

In  explanation  of  the  process  followed  the  case  of  the  fourth 
order 

r  a  .  . 

3(a-l)         r-1  2a 

9(a-l)  r-2  3a 

a-1  r-3 

will  suffice.  Increasing  each  element  of  the  first  row  by  the  corre- 
sponding elements  of  the  other  rows, — an  operation  which  we  may 
for  the  nonce  symbolise  by 

rowj  +  rowg  +  rowj  + , 

— he  removes  the  factor  r  +  3a-  3  and  finds  left  the  cof actor 

1111 
3(a-l)        r-1  2a 

2(a-l)        r-2  3a 

a-1  r-3 


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1 48  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh.  [j 


•On  this  are  performed  the  operations 

colj  -  C0I2 ,     C0I2  -  C0I3 ,     C0I3  -  C0I4 ,     

the  result  being  a  determinant  of  the  next  lower  order 

3a-r-2  r-2a-l  2a 

2-2a  2a-r  r-3a-2 

1-a  a-r+2 

Finally,  after  changing  the  signs  of  all  the  elements  here,  [the 

operations 

rowj  +  rowg  +  rowj  +  .  .  .  ,    roWj  +  roWjH-  .  .  .  ,    row3+  .  .  . ,    ... 

are  performed,  the  result 

?•  -  a  a 

2(a-l)  r-a-l  2a 

a- 1  r-a-2 

being  a  determinant  exactly  similar  in  form  to  the  original  but 
with  r-a  instead  of  r.  This,  therefore,  in  turn  may  be  trans- 
formed into 

(r  +  a-2) 


a 
r-2a-l 


r-2a 

a-1 
and  80  on. 

The  value  thus  obtained  for  the  above-written  determinant  of 
the  (n+1)'*' order  is 

(r4-wa-»)(r  +  na-n-2a+l)(r  +  na-n-4a  +  2)  .  ,  ,  (r-na) 
each  factor  being  less  than  the  preceding  by  2a-  1,  and  the  whole 
a  function  of  a{a  -  1). 

The  special  case  is  noted  where  a  —  |,  and  where  therefore  all  the 
n  + 1  resulting  factors  are  alike.     This  Painvin  writes  in  the  form 

r  J  


n 
"2 


r-1 

w-1 
2 


2      ^ 


n-2 
2 


r-3 


-n  +  1 


n 
2 


-2      ^-^ 


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1903-4.]       Dr  Muir  on  the  Theory  of  Continuants. 


149. 


but  a  preferable  is,  evidently, 
P         1  .  . 

-»     p-2         2 
.     -«+l     /a-4        3 
-n  +  2    /a-6 


p-2n'\-2      n 
-1         p-2n 


=  (p-n)- 


Hbinb,  E.  (1868,  Sept.). 

[Auszug  eines  Schreibens  iiber  die  Lameschen  Functionen  an 
den  Herausgeber.  Einige  Eigenschaften  der  LamSacYieD. 
Functionen.     Ordle^s  Joum.,  Ivi.  pp.  79-86,  87-99.] 

In  tbe  case  of  Heine  the  functions  afterwards  known  as  '*  con- 
tinuants" made  their  appearance  under  totally  different  circum- 
stances, viz^  while  he  was  engaged  in  transforming  a  special 
homogeneous  function  of  the  second  degree  by  means  of  an 
orthogonal  transformation.     It  will  be  remembered  that  if  the 

quadric 

a^^x^^  +   2a^^x^  +   2a^^x^   4-   .  .  . 


be  transformed  hy  an  orthogonal  transformation  into 

Ajiti      +    -^22%2      +    -^38^8      +    •    •    • 

the  coefficients  of  the  latter  expression  are   the  roots  of   the 
equation 

Oil  -A  0^2  Ojg  ... 


^12 
«18 


a22-A 


^28 


*28 


Ojs-A 


Now  Heine's  peculiar  quadric  was 

+  (C32  +  C>22. 


+  (ci<r-l+4rK' 


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150  Proceedings  of  Royod  Society  of  Edinburgh.  [si 


where  in  every  case  the  coefficient  of  the  product  of  two  a^'s 
vanishes  if  their  suffixes  differ  by  more  than  1,  and  where 

«'o»-K«)(«+i). 

Ci2  =  i(n-l)(n  +  2), 


c,«-J(n-r)(»  +  r+l),     (r>0) 


C*n-l  =  }«i 

He  was  thus  naturally  led  to  the  equation  in  z 


1  2-Co^         f^o^  •  •  •  •  • 

I     f^A^       Z  ~~  C^    ""  ^2  f ^^  ....  . 

KC^C^        Z-C^-C^         .... 

KCia-i  C2«r-l 


=  0, 


where  either  c^a^  is  4_i,  or  4,_i  is  ci_i  and,  if  the  latter,  4r  =  0. 
From  a  knowledge  of  Painvin's  paper  he  recognised  the  left-hand 
side  of  the  equation  as  being  the  numerator  of  the  continued 
fraction 


^0    ,-r^2~r-,2^ 


but  he  ventured  nothing  in  elucidation  of  it.     Even  the  special 
case  where  5  =  0  and  where  therefore  k^I  appears  to  have  proved 
at  the  time  too  troublesome,  although  he  knew  otherwise  that  in 
'  this  case  the  continued  fraction 


2(2-22)(2-4g)   .   .   .    (g-n2) 


and 


if  n  be  even 


(z'V)(z-S^){z^5^)  ....  (2- n^)    . 
(2-22)(2-42)  ....   (2-n^2)       ' 


-^2\      if  »  l>«  odd ; 


for  his  words  are — "  Einen  directen  Beweis  ftir  diese  Summirung 
des  Kettenbruchs  habe  ich  noch  nicht  aufgefunden.*' 


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1908-4.]        Dr  Muir  on  the  Theory  of  CorUimuiTUs, 


151 


SCHLAFLI,    L.    (1868). 

[On   the   multiple  integral    /  dxdy  ,  ,  ,  dz   whose    limits    are 

p^  =  a^x  +  b^y  +  .  .  .  +  /*i2:  >  0, 2?2  >  0,  .  .  .  ,  i?n  >  0, 
and  a;^  +  y2  +  .  .  .  +2^  >  1.  Quart,  Joum,  of  Math.,  ii. 
pp.  269-301,  iii,  pp.  64-68,  97-108.] 

The  determinant  which  makes  its  appearance  in  the  course  of 
Schlafli's  research  is 

1         -  cosa  

-coea  1  -cos^.... 

-  cos^  1         .  .  .  . 

1  -  cos  17 

-  cos  17  1        -  cos  ^ 

-  cos^  1 

which  for  shortness'  sake  he  denotes  by 

A(a,Ar,  •  •  .  ^V>0) 
and  whose  connection  with    continued    fractions    he    therefore 
specifies  by  the  equation 


A(a,Ay» 


yVy^) 


A(j8,r,  .  .  .  ,v.O) 


=     1     - 


cos^a 

n"  - 


cos^ 


C08*17 


1  -  cos^^ 
The  first  property  noticed  is,  naturally, 

A(a,/3,y,  ...,<?)-  A(^,y,  ...,<?)-  cos^a.A(y,   .   .  .  ,0). 

Later  there  is  given  what  may  be  viewed  as  an  extension  of  this, 
viz., 
A(a,  .  .   ,MUO.  .  .  .A)  =  A(a,  .  .  .M'HvA  •  •  •  A) 

-C0S«f.A(a,...,8).A(«,  ...,X), 

the  proof  being  said  to  present  no  difficulty.     The  third  is  a  little 
more  complicated,  and  is  logically  led  up  to  by  taking  four  instances 
of  the  first  property,  viz., 
A(a,Ay,   .  .   .,0      =    A09,y,  .   .  .  ,f)    -    cos^a  •  A(y,8,  .   .  . ,{), 
A(/)\y,8  .  .  .  Zv)  =    A(yA  .  .  .,17)    -    cos2^- A(8,   .  .  .Zv)^ 
A(y,8  .  .   .  ,U0)  =    A(y.8,  .  ,  .  ,rj)     -    C08«<?  •  A(y,8,  .  .  . ,{), 
M«,  '  •   .»U«,a)   =    A(8,  .  ..,U0)    -    cos^a.  A(8,  .   .   ,  Zv). 


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152  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh.  [b 

using  in  connection  with  these  the  multipliers 

A(8,  .  .  .,^,17),    -A(8,  .  .  .,0,     A(8,  .  .  .,0,    -A(y,8,  .  .  .,0, 

respectively,  performing  addition,  and  then  showing  that  the  right- 
hand  sum  vanishes,  the  result  thus  being 

A(a,/3,y,8, . . .  ,0  •  A(8,  .  .  .  ,^.17)  -   A(8,  .  .  .  ,U«,a)  •  A(y,8,  ...  ,0 
=  {A()8,y,8,  .  .  .M    -    A(y,8.   .  .  .  ,£,i7,«)}  •  A(8,  .  .   .  ,0  . 

The  fourth  property  concerns  the  determinant 

A(Ay,  .  .  .  ,17,(9)          A(a,/3,y,  .   .   .  ,17,^) 
A(i8,y,  .   .  .,1;)  A(a,Ay,. 17) 

which  by  reason  of  the  first  property  can  be  shown  equal  to 


A()8,y,  .  .  .  ,i7,<?)  -  A(y,  .  .  .  ,17,^?) 

A(Ay,  ...  ,17)  -  A(y,  ...  ,17) 


COS^O, 


or 


A(y,   .   .    ,,ri,e)         A(i8,y,   .   .   .,,7,^) 
A(y,  ...  ,,7)  A(^,y,  ...  ,17) 


COS^O, 


and  ultimately,  "  by  repeating  this  sort  of  transformation,"  equal 
to 

cos^a  cos^jS  cos^  ....  cos^^ . 

If  we  use  for  a  moment  the  present-day  notation  for  continuants, 
viz.,  where 


a,   +   ^1  K 


^2    +    TT    ^ 


yg^  og  03 .  .  .  y 

Vh     «8    •    •    •    / 

Schlafli's  results  are  seen  to  be 

■'(I^^'^..)->^(lY•..)-ft'^(.v^.)., 


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1908-4.]        Dr  Muir  on  the  Theory  of  Continuants, 

■■^(l''•....^^w.^...''-l)^(-K.^...^)l 

«(A..^)  >^(l^■l...^) 


■•{ 


153 


1    1... 


.), 


^U\..'-\)  K\J-\) 


the  only  change  heing  the  writing  of  jS^ ,  jSg , 


(-l)-/3^^,...)8., 
.  for    -  cos^a , 


WoRPiTZKY  (1865,  April). 

[Untersuchongen  tiber  die  Entwickelung  der  monodromen 
und  monogenen  Functionen  durch  Kettenbriiche.  (Sch. 
Progr.)  39  pp.,  Berlin.] 

Of  the  six  sections  into  which  the  paper  giving  the  results  of 
Worpitzky's  painstaking  investigation  is  divided  it  is  only  the 
first  headed  '*  Fundamentalrelationen ''  which  concerns  us,  these 
relations  being  nothing  else  than  what  we  should  now  call  **  pro- 
perties of  continuants." 

He  takes  his  continued  fraction  in  the  same  form  as  Schlafli, 
viz.. 


*  *  1  + 


showing  of  course  that  it  equals 


^  r 


N, 


where 


2"» 


^..n 


I  1 

-o.  1  1 

-  a,.,     1 


-   On-l  11 

-a,     1 


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154  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Ediiibv/rgh.         [sks. 

The  first  matter  of  interest  is  the  expansion  of  N.  „  as  a  sum  of 
products  of  a«  ,  a,e-i ,  .  .  . ,  a„ ,      e.g., 

^1.8  =  1  +  («i  +  ^2  +  «8)  +  «A- 
This  is  written  in  the  form 

1  +  <n  +  a,i.  =   .  .  .  . 

where,  he  says,  "a^y^  die  Summe  aller  moglichen  (als  Producte 
aufgefassten)  Combinationscomplezionen  ohne  Wiederholung  be- 
deutet,  welche  sich  aus  o^ ,  ok^^  ,  .  .  . ,  o^  so  zu  je  r  Elementen 
bilden  lassen,  dass  nicht  zwei  neben  einander  stehende  Elemente 
a«,  a«+i  dieser  Reihe  in  den  einzelnen  Producten  zugleich  vor- 
kommen."  By  way  of  proof  it  is  pointed  out  (1)  that  the  term 
independent  of  all  the  a's  is 


1 

1 

0 

1 

1 

0 

1 

0 

1 
1 

i.e.    +  1 ; 


(2)  that  the  cofactor*  of  (-a^)( -a,)(— a,) 
the  a's  are  consecutive  is 


when  two  of 


1    1 

0     1     1 

0     1     1 
1     0    0 
1     0 
0 

0 

I    1 

0     1 
0 

1 
1 

i.e.   0; 


*  To  obtain  the  cofactor  of  the  product  of  a  number  of  a  set  of  elements  in 
a  determinant  Worpitzky  puts  a  1  in  the  determinant  in  place  of  each  element 
occurring  in  the  said  product,  O's  in  all  the  other  places  of  the  rows  to  which 
these  elements  belong,  and  O's  for  all  the  other  elements  of  the  set. 


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1903-4.]         Dr  Muir  on  the  Theory  of  Continuants, 

and  (3)  that  the   cofactor   of  (  -  a^)(  -  a,)(  -  a,)  .  .  . 
two  of  the  a's  are  consecutive  and  their  number  i«  j?,  is 

1     1 
0     1     1 

0     1     1 
1     0     0 
0     1     1 

0     1     1 
1     0     0 
0     1     1 


155 
when  no 


0     1     1 
0     1 


t.e. 


1     1 
1     0 


t.e.  (-  \y, 


and  that,  therefore,  the  cofactor  of  a^/i^  ...  in  this  case  is  +  1. 
In  exactly  similar  fashion  by  partitioning  N.  „  into  terms  which 
contain  -  a,  and  terms  which  do  not,  he  finds 


N,.n  =   Do   -   a,D,, 


where 


1 


1 


I>o  = 


0 


1         1 
-  a^i     1         1 


-a«.i     1         1 
-a„       1 


1       1 


-a,.,     1       1 


1       1 


a„-l   1     1 

-fln      1 


=  N,,.,.N,^,„, 


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156        Froceedings  of  Boyal  Society  of  Edinburgh.  [i 

and 

1       1 
-a»    1       1 


I>.= 


a,_    1        1 

-a,-i    0        1 

1         0      0 

-  a*+i     1       1 


1       1 


0  1  I 

1  0 


'On     1 
1  1 


-a*-8     11  I  -a^.i    1       1 

-«*-2     1  -a«    1 

and  thus  reaches  the  result 

already  obtained  in  a  different  way  by  Schlafli. 

Lastly,  taking  a  determinant  of  the  same  form  as  Njt,„,  but 
having 

-  a„  -  a,_i, . . . ,  -  Oj+i,  -  a^,  -  aj,  -  Oi^.,, . . . ,  -  o^i,  -  a^ 

for  its  minor  diagonal  of  a\  he  obtains  for  it  by  isolating  the  first 
Qj^  the  expression 

and  by  isolating  the  second  a^ 
and  thus  deduces 

It  is  then  noted  that  the  bracketed  expression  on  the  right  differs 


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1903-4.]        Dr  Muir  on  the  Theory  of  Continmants.  157 

from  the  expression  on  the  left  merely  in  having  A;  + 1  in  place  of 
k ;  so  that  there  results 


This  also,  it  will  be  seen,  is  connected  with  a  result  of  Schlafli's ; 
for  putting  «=n  - 1  we  have* 

which  becomes  identical  with  Schlafli's  last  proposition  on  trans- 
posing the  two  rows  of  the  determinant  and  (what  is  equally  im- 
material) putting  A;=  1. 


Thiblk,  T.  N.  (1869,  1870). 

[BemflBrkninger  om   KJ8Bdebr0ker.      Tidaskrift  for  Math,  (2), 

V.  pp.  144-146. 
Den  endelige  Kj»debr0ksfunktions  Theori.       Tidsskri  forft 
Math.  (2),  vi.  pp.  145-170.] 

The  first  of  the  two  notes  comprising  Thiele's  first  paper  con- 
tains only  one  result,  viz., 


«i+;i^  +  ^ 


ag-h 


(Oj ,  tto ,  . . . ,  a„) 
(ttg,  . . . ,  a„)     ' 


an 


where  (a^y  ag, ...,««)  is  used  to  stand  for 

«!     ^     

- 1       a.        6« 


-1     a„ 


♦  In  giving  to  N,+i.,,  Na+2^,  N«+8^  the  values  1,1,0  which  are  necessi- 
tated by  assuming  the  generality  of  the  recursion-formula 

Worpitzky  forgets  to  note  that  in  these  cases  the  proposition  N».n=Nn.ft ,  used 
by  him  in  the  demonstration,  does  not  hold. 


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158         Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinhwrgk. 


[8B8S. 


There  is  nothing  to  indicate  that  this  is  not  viewed  as  a  fresh 
discovery,  notwithstanding  the  fact  that  Ramus'  paper  of  1856  con- 
taining virtually  the  same  identity  was  published  in  the  same  city. 

The  other  paper  may  be  described  as  a  careful  study  of  finite 
continued  fractions  with  the  help  of  determinants.  Instead  of 
6j,  6j,  .  .  .  are  used  ai2>  ^2S>  •  •  ''y  ^^^ 


a 


Wl  ^iH-ljH-l 


«g-l    Clq-\,q 


is  denoted  by 

Further,  this  determinant  is  spoken  of  as  a  "  Kjaedebr0ksdeter- 
minant,"  or,  shortly,  a  "  K-Determinant " ;  and  a  section  (§  3,  pp. 
149-152)  is  devoted  to  a  statement  of  its  properties. 

There  is  no  need  to  rehearse  all  of  these,  the  last  portion  (D)  of 
the  section  being  alone  that  which  contains  fresh  matter.  Opening 
with  the  double  use  of  a  previous  property,  viz., 

K(M*)  =   K(/^A;-l).K(A^w)    -    a*_,^(M- 2).K(A;+l,m), 
K(;i,/i)    -    K{h,k-\yK{h,n)    -    a;fe_,^K(A,A;-2).K(A;  +  l,n), 

where  h,  A:,  m,  n  are  in  ascending  order  of  magnitude,  the  author 
eliminates  K(/i,A;-  1)  and  obtains 

K(V»)    TL{k,m)\  _  „JK(&,m)    K(&+l,m)| 

K(A,»)     K(&,n)     -«*-M--K'('^*-  2)- 1  K(;fc^„)     K(;t+  l,n)  | .  ^"> 

Then  by  taking  the  particular  case  of  this  where  k  appears  in 
place  of  h  and  A;  + 1  in  place  of  k  there  results 


K(A:,m)     K(A;-Hl,w) 
K(A;,n)      K(A:+l,n) 


I  K(A;+l,m)  K(/c  +  2,m) 
^*'*"''|  K(A;+l,n)     K(A;+2,n) 


which  when  applied  to  one  of  the  determinants  occurring  in  itself 
gives 


lL{k,m)    K(A;+l,m) 
K(A;,n)     K(A;+1,») 


—    ^ft.*+l^*+l,*+2' 


K(A:  +  2,m)    K(A;  +  3,m) 
K(A;+2,n)     K(A:+3,70 


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1903-4.]         Dr  Muir  on  the  Theory  of  Contimmnts, 
and  finally 


159 


K{m+l,7n)   K(m  +  2,7w)  I 
K(m+l,w)     K(m  +  2,n)  |, 


W) 


=  a*.*+i«*+M+J  •  •  •  •  «m,«+i  •  K(w  +  2,n) . 
Further,  by  using  this  to  make  a  substitution  in  the  previous  result 
(a)  there  is  obtained 


which  on  putting  k  —  h-^l  and  m  =  n  -  1  becomes 
K(M-l)   K(;i+l,n-l) 


K(M)         K(h+l,n) 


=  *A,»+l^A+l.A+i  • 


<»n-l. 


— a  result  which  may  be  compared  with  one  of  Schlafli's  and 
Worpitzky's,  but  which  is  more  general  in  that  the  main  diagonal 
of  each  "  K-Determinant "  does  not  consist  of  units. 


LIST  OF  AUTHORS 
whose  writings  are  herein  dealt  with. 


PAGE 

PAGB 

1853.  Sylybsteb    . 

.     130 

1857.  Cayley. 

.     144 

1853.  SpomswooDE 

.     134 

1858.  Painvin 

.     147 

1853.  Sylvbstek    . 

.     135 

1858.  Heine  . 

.     149 

1853.  Stlvester    . 

.     138 

1858.    SCHLAFLI 

.     151 

1854.  Sylvester    . 

.     141 

1865.    WORPITZKY    . 

.     153 

1855.    SOflLAFLI 

.     141 

1869.  Thiblb. 

.     157 

1856.  Ramus  . 

.     142 

1870.  Thielb. 

.     157 

{Issued  aepartUely,  February  26,  1 904. ) 


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160  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinbu/rgh,         [i 


On  the  Origin  of  the  Epiphysis  Cerebri  as  a  Bilateral 
Structure  in  the  Chick.  By  John  Cameron,  M.B. 
(Edin.),  M.R.C.S.  (Eng.),  Carnegie  Fellow,  Demonstrator  of 
Anatomy,  United  College,  University  of  St  Andrews.  Gont- 
municated  by  Dr  W.  G.  Aitchison  Robertson. 

(MS.  received  January  4,  1904.     Read  same  date.) 

CONTENTS. 

(1)  Results  of  thb  pbesrnt  Research  . 

(2)  compaeison  of  results 

(3)  summaet  and  conclusions     . 

(4)  Literature       .... 

(5)  Explanation  of  Illustrations 


PAGE 

160 
163 
164 
165 
167 


(1)  Results  op  the  present  Research. 

Till  within  recent  years  the  epiphysis  cerebri  has  been  generally 
regarded  as  a  mesial  outgrowth  from  the  roof  of  the  thalamenceph- 
alon  in  Vertebrates.  The  researches  of  B^raneck  (6),  Dendy  (11), 
Hill  (17),  and  Locy  (19),  however,  tend  to  demonstrate  the  fact  that 
this  structure  arises  in  the  form  of  two  bilateral  outgrowths ;  while 
Gaskell  (12)  has  drawn  attention  to  its  bilateral  nature  in 
Ammocoetes.  Some  observations  which  the  author  made  on  the 
development  of  the  epiphysis  in  Amphibia  (8  and  9)  were  found  to 
agree  in  the  main  with  those  of  the  above-mentioned  workers.  The 
present  research  was  therefore  undertaken  with  the  view  of  cor- 
roborating the  results  which  had  been  obtained  in  the  Amphibia,  and 
it  was  found  that  these  received  support  in  the  case  of  the  chick. 

A  number  of  early  chick-embryos  (chiefly  between  the  60th 
and  60th  hours  of  incubation)  were  examined ;  and  although  it  was 
difficult  in  every  instance  to  obtain  distinct  evidence  of  the  bilateral 
nature  of  the  epiphysis,  still  in  the  majority  of  cases  this  con- 
dition was  distinctly  marked.  The  reason  for  the  difficulty  of 
demonstrating  in  all  cases  the  presence  of  the  bilateral  epiphysial 
condition  will  be  explained  later. 


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1903-4.]     Origin  of  the  Epiphysis  Cerebri  in  the  Chick,        161 

Fig.  1  is  drawn  from  a  chick-embryo  at  the  50th  hour  of  incuba- 
tion, and  represents  a  transverse  section  of  the  thalamencephalon 
in  the  pineal  region.  The  larger  of  the  two  evaginations  lies 
distinctly  to  the  left  of  the  mesial  plane  (which  is  represented  by 
the  dotted  line  in   the  figure),  while  on  the  right  side  a  much 


I 
Fio.  1. 

smaller  evagination  exists.  The  latter  was  found  to  bej^evident  in 
the  whole  series  of  sections  of  the  pineal  region  in  this  embryo, 
but  it  was  in  every  instance  much  smaller  than  the  left 
evagination. 

Fig.  2  is  from  a  chick-embryo  at  the  60th  hour  of  incubation, 


Fio.  2. 

and  represents  a  transverse  section  of  the  roof  of  the  thalam- 
encephalon in  the  pineal  region  as  in  the  previous  instance.  The 
resemblance  between  this  fig.  and  the  fig.  No.  5  which  illustrates 
Dendy's  paper  (11)  is  most  striking,  as  will  be  at  once  recognised  on 
comparing  the  two.  Fig.  2  shows  with  marked  clearness  the  simul- 
PEOC.  ROY.  800.  EDIN.— VOL.  XXV.  11 


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162  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  JSdinburyh.         [stss. 

taneous  presence  of  both  the  right  and  left  primary  epiphysial 
outgrowths.  Here,  again,  the  left  is  by  far  the  more  marked  of  the 
two ;  but  the  right  outgrowth  is  also  well  developed — more  so  than 
in  the  previous  instance  (fig.  1).  This  section  seems  to  the  author 
to  afford  distinct  proof  of  the  fact  that  the  epiphysis  in  the  chick 
arises  in  the  form  of  two  distinct  evaginations.  Many  other  figs, 
of  this  early  stage  could  have  been  represented ;  but  those  already 
given  amply  demonstrate  the  presence  of  the  right  and  left 
epiphysial  outgrowths.  In  all  the  many  sections  showing  paired 
outgrowths  the  left  was  better  developed  than  the  right. 

A  study  of  the  later  stages  of  development  of  the  epiphysis  in 
the  chick  shows  that  the  duration  of  the  bilateral  condition  is  very 
brief — the  right  and  left  primary  outgrowths  blending  with  one 
another  to  form  the  single  unpaired  epiphysial  evagination.  This 
is  found  to  take  place  towards  the  end  of  the  3rd  day — after 
the  60th  hour  of  incubation.  The  bilateral  condition  is  thus  best 
observed  between  the  50th  and  60th  hours  of  incubation,  so  that 
it  has  a  very  transient  existence  (just  as  in  Amphibia) ;  and  this 
probably  explains  why  the  bilateral  origin  has  not  been  previously 
recognised.  But  it  should  also  be  noted  that  in  some  instances  the 
right  or  smaller  evagination  was  present,  but  only  faintly  distin- 
guishable, so  that  it  was  quite  possible  either  to  overlook  its  presence 
altogether  (more  especially  if  a  single  embryo  was  being  examined 
instead  of  a  series),  or  to  consider  it  was  as  a  small  fold  of  the  cere- 
bral wall  due  to  faulty  fixation,  or,  lastly,  to  look  upon  it  as  an 
anomalous  condition.  All  the  eggs  which  were  examined  in  this 
research  were  incubated  under  a  *  broody '  hen,  so  that  the  occur* 
rence  of  those  anomalies  which  ensue  from  the  use  of  an  artificial 
incubator  was  avoided.  All  the  embryos  were  carefully  fixed  in 
Bles'  fluid,  which  is  an  excellent  fixative  for  embryonic  tissues,  and 
all  risks  of  shrinkage  were  thus  entirely  obviated. 

As  has  been  already  stated,  the  bilateral  condition  of  the 
epiphysis  ceases  to  exist  about  the  end  of  the  3rd  day  of  incuba- 
tion; but  one  cannot  draw  a  hard-and-fast  line  of  demarcation 
regarding  the  duration  of  the  bilateral  condition,  as  it  is  a  well- 
recognised  fact  that  chick-embryos  vary  considerably  in  their  rate 
of  growth.  In  some  cases,  therefore,  the  presence  of  the  bilateral 
condition  was  observed  previous  to  the  50th  hour  of  incubation, 


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1903-4.]     Origin  of  the  Epiphysis  Cerebri  in  the  Chick,         163 

while  in  the  other  cases  this  condition  was  distinctly  evident  after 
the  60th  hour  of  incubation. 

Fig.  3  is,  like  the  others,  a  transverse  section  of  the  thalam- 
encephalon  in  the  pineal  region,  and  is  from  a  chick-embryo  at 
the  end  of  the  3rd  day  of  incubation.  This  figure  represents  what 
might  be  termed  the  unpaired  condition  of  the  epiphysis.  On 
close  examination,  however,  the  presence  of  two  small  angular 
recesses  within  the  evagination  will  be  noted,  and  it  may  be  sug- 
gested that  these  are  probably  lingering  evidences  of  the  previously 
existing  bilateral  outgrowths — the  process  of  coalescence  having 
apparently  just  taken  place. 


Fig.  3. 
It  therefore  appears  that  what  in  its  earlier  stages  of  development 
used  to  be  looked  upon  as  a  mesially  placed  epiphysial  evagination 
is  really  situated  to  the  left  of  the  mesial  plane,  tohile  a  more 
feebly  formed  evagination  exists  on  the  right  side.  This  bilateral 
condition  is,  however,  very  transitory,  and  soon  gives  7-ise  to  the 
impuired  condition  of  the  epiphysis  by  a  coalescence  of  tJie 
primary  elements. 

(2)  Comparison  of  Rksults. 

The  results  of  this  research  are  of  interest  in  so  far  as  they 
support  the  observations  previously  made  by  the  author  in  the 
Amphibia  (8  and  9).  They  also  agree  in  the  main  with  the 
results  obtained  by  various  observers  in  reference  to  other  classes 
of  the  Vertebrata.  In  Amphibia  the  author  has  described  the 
presence  in  the  early  stages  of  right  and  left  recesses  from  the  roof 
of  the  thalamencephalon,  of  which  the  left  is  the  better  developed 
of  the  two ;  and  has  shown  that  these  very  soon  coalesce  to  form  a 
single  epiphysial  structure.  It  will  be  at  once  observed  that  these 
conclusions  are  corroborated  in  the  case  of  the  chick. 

It  is  also  interesting  to  compare  the  results  of  the  present  re- 
search with  those  of  Dendy  (11)  on  Hatteria.     This  observer  has 


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164  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh,  [siss. 

demonstrated  in  embryos  of  this  reptile  the  presence  of  right  and 
left  epiphysial  outgrowths,  which  remain  distinct  and  separate  from 
each  other.  Of  these,  the  left  is  the  more  important,  and  gives 
rise  to  the  pineal  eye,  while  the  right  never  becomes  transformed 
into  anything  resembling  a  pineal  eye,  but  retains  its  attachment 
to  the  roof  of  the  thalamencephalon,  and  constitutes  the  epiphysial 
stalk.  So  also  in  the  chick  the  left  evagination  is  the  more  important 
of  the  two.  It  is,  however,  uuable  to  remain  separate  from  the 
right  evagination,  and  thus  fails  to  retain  its  individuality.* 

Hill  (17)  has  described  right  and  left  epiphysial  evaginations  in 
Teleosteans  and  in  Amia ;  but  in  the  specimens  examined  by  him 
the  right  outgrowth  was  somewhat  more  vigorous  than  the  left, 
while  they  showed  no  tendency  to  blend  with  one  another. 

Locy  (19)  has  been  another  worker  in  this  field  of  research. 
He  describes  the  epiphysis  of  Elasmobranchs  as  developing  from  a 
pair  of  united  accessory  optic  vesicles.  In  this  group  of  Fishes, 
therefore,  the  paired  elements  tend  to  blend  with  one  another  as 
in  the  case  of  the  chick  and  the  Amphibia. 

This  research  was  conducted  in  the  Anatomy  Department  of  the 
United  College,  University  of  St  Andrews,  under  the  terms  of 
my  appointment  both  as  a  Carnegie  Fellow  and  as  a  Research 
Fellow  of  St  Andrews  University.  I  wish  here  to  express  my 
best  thanks  to  Professor  Musgrove  for  many  valuable  facilities 
which  were  afforded  to  me  diiring  the  progress  of  the  work.  I 
intend  to  study  the  early  stages  of  development  of  the  epiphysis  in 
Mammalia  in  order  to  ascertain  whether  any  evidence  of  the  bi- 
lateral condition  of  the  epiphysis  can  be  found  in  this  class  of 
Vertebrates. 

(3)  Summary  and  Conclusions. 

(1)  The  epiphysis  cerebri  in  the  chick-embryo  first  appears  in 

the  form  of  right  and  left  outgrowths  or  evaginations.     Of  these, 

the  left  is  the  better  marked  of  the  two. 

*  My  attention  has  been  directed  to  a  statement  in  Bateson's  MateriaU  for 
the  Study  of  VaricUion^  to  the  effect  that  the  functional  eyes  of  Vertebrates, 
like  other  structures  near  the  mesial  plane,  tend  in  certain  rare  instances  to 
coalesce.  This  cyclopian  condition  has  been  described  in  the  chick  (see  page 
458  of  the  above  work),  while  on  page  461  there  is  illustrated  a  specimen  of 
the  worker-bee  (Aj^  mellifica)  with  the  two  compound  eyes  fused  together  in 
the  mesial  plane. 


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1903-4.]     Origin  of  the  Epiphysis  Cerebri  in  the  Chick,         165 

(2)  The  right  primary  evagination  blends  with  the  left  at  an 
early  stage  of  development  to  form  a  unified  structure. 

(3)  These  observations  correspond  for  the  most  part  with  those 
already  made  by  the  author  in  the  case  of  the  Amphibia.  They 
also  agree  in  many  ways  with  those  of  B^raneck,  Dendy,  Gaskell, 
Hill  and  Locy  in  other  classes  of  the  Vertebrata.  As  a  result  of 
this,  it  is  evident  that  in  the  four  lower  Vertebrate  classes  the 
epiphysis  cerebri  arises  as  a  bilateral,  and  not  as  a  mesial  structure. 

(4)  It  is  probable  that  the  ancestors  of  Vertebrates  possessed  a 
pair  of  parietal  eyes,  and  not  a  single  unpaired  structure. 

(4)   LiTBRATURB. 

Literature  consulted  in  connection  with  the  present  research  : — 

(1)  Balfour,  F.  M.,  Comparative  Enibryology^  vol.  ii.,  1881. 

(2)  Beard,  J.,  "The  Parietal  Eye  in  Fishes,"  Nature,  vol. 
xxxvi.,  1887,  pp.  246  and  340. 

(3)  Bbard,  J.,  "  The  Parietal  Eye  of  the  Cyclostome  Fishes," 
Quart.  Jour.  Micr.  Sci^  vol.  xxix.,  1888,  p.  55. 

(4)  B^RANBCK,  E.,  "  Sur  le  nerf  parietal  et  la  morphologie 
du  troisi^me  ceil  des  Vert^br^s,"  Anat.  Am,,  Bd.  vii.,  1892, 
8.  674. 

(5)  B^RANBGK,  E.,  "  Llndividualit^  de  Toeil  parietal,"  Anat. 
Am.,  Bd.  viii.,  1893,  s.  669. 

(6)  BuRCKHARDT,  R,  "  Die  Homologien  des  Zwischenhirndaches, 
und  ihre  Bedeutung  fur  die  Morphologie  des  Hirns  bei  niederen 
Vertebraten,"  Anat.  Am.,  Bd.  ix.,  1894,  s.  152. 

(7)  BuROKHARDT,  R.,  "Die  Homologien  des  Zwischenhirndaches 
bei  Reptilien  und  Vogeln,"  Anat.  Am.,  Bd.  ix.,  1894,  s.  320. 

(8)  Cameron,  J.,  "On  the  Origin  of  the  Pineal  Body  as  an 
Amesial  Structure,  deduced  from  the  Study  of  its  Development  in 
Amphibia,"  Anat.  Am.,  Bd.  xxiii.,  1903,  s.  394.  Also  in  Proc. 
R(yy.  Soc.  of  Edin.,  vol.  xxiv.,  1903,  p.  572 ;  and  in  Proc.  Scot. 
Micr.  Soc.,  vol  iii,  1903. 

(9)  Cameron,  J.,  "  On  the  Bilateral  Origin  of  the  Epiphysis  in 
Amphibia,"  Proc.  of  Brit.  Ansae,  1903,  Section  D. 

(10)  Dendy,  A.,  "  Summary  of  the  Principal  Results  obtained  in 
a  Study  of  the  Development  of  the  Tuatara  {SpheTwdon  punctatus)," 
Proc.  Roy.  Soc,  vol.  Ixiii.,  1898,  p.  440. 


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166  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Ediriburgh.  [sess. 

(11)  Dendy,  a.,  "On  the  Development  of  the  Parietal  Eye  and 
Adjacent  Organs  in  Sphenodon  {Ifatteria)"  Quart,  Jour.  After.  Set,, 
vol.  xlii.,  1899,  p.  111. 

(12)  Gaskbll,  W.  H.,  "On  the  Origin  of  Vertebrates  from  a 
Crustacean-like  Ancestor,"  Quart.  Jour.  Micr.  Sei.^  vol.  xxxi., 
1890,  p.  379. 

(13)  Graap,  H.  W.  db,  "Zur  Anatomic  und  Entwickelungs- 
geschichte  der  Epiphyse  bei  Amphibien  und  Reptilien,"  Zool.  Am,^ 
Bd.  ix.,  1886,  s.  191. 

(14)  Hill,  C,  "Development  of  the  Epiphysis  in  Coregonus 
cUbus"  Jour,  of  Morph,,  vol.  v.,  1891,  p.  503. 

(15)  Hill,  C,  "The  Epiphysis  of  Teleosts  and  Amia''  Jour,  of 
Morph.,  vol.  ix.,  1894,  p.  237. 

(16)  Lbydig,  F.,  "Das  Parietal  Organ  der  Wirbelthiere,"  Zool. 
Am.,  Bd.  X.,  1887,  s.  534. 

(17)  Loot,  W.  A.,  "The  Derivation  of  the  PiQcal  Eye,"  Anat. 
Am.,  Bd.  ix.,  1894,  s.  169,  s.  231. 

(18)  LocY,  W.  A.,  "The  Mid-brain  and  the  Accessory  Optic 
Vesicles,"  Anat.  Am.,  Bd.  ix.,  1894,  s.  486. 

(19)  LocY,  W.  A.,  "Accessory  Optic  Vesicles  in  Chick- 
embryo,"  Abstract  in  Jour,  of  Roy.  Ulicr.  Soc,  1898. 

(20)  Marshall,  A.  M.,  "  Vertebrate  Embryology,"  1893. 

(21)  Prbnant,  a.,  "Sur  Toeil  parietal  accessoire,"  ^«a^.  Am.^ 
Bd.  ix.,  1894,  s.  103. 

(22)  Rabl-RCckhardt,  H.,  "  Zur  Deutung  der  Zirbeldriise 
(Epiphysis),"  Zool.  Am.,  Bd.  ix.,  1886,  s.  405. 

(23)  RiTTER,  W.  E.,  "  On  the  Presence  of  a  Parapineal  Organ 
in  Phrynosoma,"  Anat.  Anz.,  Bd.  ix.,  1894,  s.  766. 

(24)  Spencbr,  W.  B.,  "  The  Parietal  Eye  of  Hatteria,"  Natvre, 
vol.  xxxi  v.,  1886,  p.  559. 

(25)  Spencer,  W.  B.,  "Preliminary  Communication  on  the 
Structure  and  Presence  in  Sphenodon  and  other  Lizards  of  the 
Median  Eye  described  by  de  Graaf  in  Anguis  fragilis"  Proc  Ray. 
Soc,  1886,  p.  559. 

(26)  Spencer,  W.  B.,  "  On  the  Presence  and  Structure  of  the 
Pineal  Eye  in  Lacertilia,"  Quart.  Jour.  Micr.  Set.,  vol.  xxvii., 
1886,  p.  165. 


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1908-4.]     Origin  of  the  Epiphysis  Cerebri  in  the  Chick.         167 

(5)  Explanation  of  Fiourks. 

[The  figures  were  drawn  with  the  aid  of  Zeiss's  oamera  lacida  apjMiratus. 
ZdsB^s  objective  A  and  ocular  No.  3  were  employed.] 

f./.,  subcutaneous  connective  tissue;  ep.,  epiphysis;  epib.^ 
epiblast;  /.  ep,  ev.y  left  epiphysial  evagination ;  r.  ep.  ev., 
right  epiphysial  evagination;  thcU,,  cavity  of  thalamen- 
cephalon. 

Fig.  1.  Transverse  section  of  the  roof  of  the  thalamencephalon 
in  the  pineal  region.  Embryo-chick  at  the  50th  hour  of  incuba- 
tion. The  right  and  left  primary  epiphysial  evaginations  are  seen. 
Two  germinal  nuclei  in  a  condition  of  karyokinesis  are  observable. 
The  dotted  line  represents  the  mesial  plane. 

Fig.  2.  Transverse  section  of  the  roof  of  the  thalamencephalon 
in  the  pineal  region.  Embryo-chick  at  the  60th  hour  of  incuba- 
tion. The  right  and  left  primary  epiphysial  evaginations  are 
especiaUy  well  marked.  Several  germinal  nuclei  are  seen.  The 
mesial  plane  is  represented  by  the  dotted  line. 

Fig.  3.  Transverse  section  of  the  roof  of  the  thalamencephalon 
in  the  pineal  region.  Embryo-chick  at  the  end  of  the  3rd  day  of 
incubation.  The  unpaired  condition  of  the  epiphysis  is  shown. 
The  presence  of  two  small  angular  recesses,  however,  within  tlie 
epiphysial  evagination  may  denote  traces  of  the  previously  existing 
bilateral  condition. 


Issued  separately  March  17,  ld04,) 


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168  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinbrnrgh,  [j 


Theorem  regarding  the  OrthogoncJ  Transformatioii 
of  a  Quadric.    By  Thomas  Muir,  LL.D. 

(MS.  received  July  27,  1903.    Read  November  2,  1903.) 

(1)  The  theorem  in  question  arises  out  of  a  consideration  of 
several  passages  in  Jacohi's  important  memoir  of  1833*  on 
orthogonal  transformation.  Having  determined  the  suhetitution 
which  simultaneously  changes 

and 

2«it\««^A    into    Giy,2  +  G2i/22+   .  .  .    +G^«2, 

Kk 

Jacohi  proceeds  to  show  (p.  12)  that,  by  the  same  substitution, 
Gi V  +  ^'2V  +   .  .  .   +  G,'y„«, 

where  p  is  any  positive  integer,  can  be  expressed  in  terms  of 
OJj , ajg I  •  •  •  i^n{^* expressionen per ipsas x^^x^^  .  .  .  , ar„ exhibere 
licet ").  The  actual  result,  however,  is  not  sought  for.  Later  on 
(p.  14)  he  reaches  a  theorem  which  would  enable  him  to  remove 
the  restriction  on  ^  so  as  to  admit  negative  integral  values  as  well, 
but  the  opportimity  is  not  used.  The  reason  for  the  seeming 
neglect  probably  is  that  he  has  in  view  a  second  return  to  the 
subject  when  prepared  to  deal  more  effectively  with  it.  However 
this  may  be,  certain  it  is  that  he  does  return  to  it,  and  gives  a 
hypothetical  form  of  the  desired  expression  in  x^^x^^  .  ,  .  ,x^. 
His  words  (p.  20)  are : — 

"Statuamus  G^y^^  +  G^V  +  •  •  •  +G///„2  „  ^p^^^x^^  ubi 

and  where,  we  may  add,  the  a*s  are  the  coefficients  of  the  substitu- 
tion.    Regarding  the  validity  of  this  nothing  is  said,  but  proof  is 

*  Jacobi,  C.  6.  J.,  De  binis  qaibuslibet  fonctionibus  homogeneis  secuDdi 

ordinis  per  tubstitutiones  linearen  in  alias  binas  transformandis 

CreUc'BJoum,,  xii,  pp.  1-69.    (Aug.  1888.) 


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1903-4.]  Dr  Miiir  on  Orthogonal  Transformation  of  a  Qtuidric,  169 

adduced  to  show  that  whether  j>  be  a  positive  or  negative  int^er 
the  coefficient  of  x^)^  is  a  rational  function  of  the  coefficients  of 
the  original  quadric. 

With  this  general  statement  of  the  case  before  us,  let  us  take 
up  the  individual  results  in  order,  and  see  what  is  obtainable 
therefrom  in  the  light  of  later  work. 

(2)  The  primary  result  is  the  transformation  implied  in  the 
equation 

Kk 

This,  for  our  purpose,  it  is  essential  to  write  in  a  form  which 
brings  into  evidence  the  matrix  M  of  the  discriminant  of  the 
quadric,  viz.,  in  the  form 


*1 

a'* 

*8 

«11 

«1J 

«l. 

«M 

«!2 

<hi 

«B1 

Si 

«8« 

-     Giy,2  +  G^y^^  +  G32/32, 


where,  merely  for  shortness'  sake,  only  three  variables  are  taken. 
Now,  as  Jacobi  himself  showed,  any  equation  which  holds  between 
the  ar's  and  y's  will  still  hold  if  we  put 

(  «ii     ^'12     «i3  )(-^  I  ^s  I  ^s)    f <>r    a?! ,  jTg ,  arj 
«ai     ^    «28 

«81       «82      «88 


and 


Gi2/i ,  ^2^2 >  C^s^'s    ^^^    yiyy^yVv 


Thisjysubetitution,  however,  in  the  bipartite  function  on  the  left 
results  simply  in  the  matrix  of  the  discriminant  being  twice 
multiplied  by  itself*  so  that  we  have 


^ 


M« 


(^iW  +  G2V  +  GsV- 


*  Trans.  R.  S,  Edinh.,  xxxii.  p.  480. 


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170  Proceedings  of  Boyal  Society  of  Edinbv/rgh. 


[« 


The  continuation  of  the  process,  and  the  same  treatment  applied 
to  the  equation 

=        ^1^  +  2/2^  +  ^8^ 


.       .       1 

thus  lead  us  to   the  result  that,  for  any  positive  integer  p,  we 
have — 


^^     ^    ^  =     Gi^'y^^  +  GiV  +  ^iV- 


W 


1 


Not  only  therefore  do  we  know  that  ^Gx^'y^*  can  be  expressed 

in  terms  of  the  jt's,  but  the  actual  form  of  the  expression — and  a 
beautifuUy  simple  form — is  obtained. 

(3)  If  this  result  is  to  hold  for  n^ative  values  of  p,  some^con- 
vention  must  be  established  as  to  negative  powers  of  a  matrix^ 
Now  according  to  Cayley  the  first  negative  power,  M"^,  is 
defined  by  the  equation 


( 


«11       «12      «13    V         =       ^    -^ 


«21       ^2      «28 
«3l       «32      «M 


^12 

A 


A 


•"21 

A 


A 

^28 

A 


Asi  ) 
A 


^88 


where  A  =  |  a^  Oj^  ^ss  I  and  A^^ ,  A^g ,  ...  are  the  cofactors'^of 
^u  >  ^12  >  •  •  •  in  A  :  consequently  the  p^  negative  power,  M~^, 
may  be  viewed  either  as 


( «ii  «i2  «i8  y\ 

«21      «22      «28 
«81       «82      «88 


i-1 


or 


( 4ii  ^  ^1  y 

AAA 

_12     ^«     -2^ 
AAA 

-^18       ^      ^88 

AAA 


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1903-4.]  Dr  Muir  on  Orthogonal  Transformation  ofaQuadric.  171 
With  this  before  up  let  us  return  to  the  primary  result 


=^1 

^2 

^8 

«11 

"12 

"18 

«il 

«S2 

"28 

«S1 

"82 

«88 

and  make  use  of  the  theorem^  that  any  equation  which  holds 
between  the  x^s  and  y's  will  still  hold  if  we  put 

(    ^1       -^21      ^81    )  V*^! »  ^2  >  ^s)      ^^^     ^1 »  ^2  >  ^8 

AAA 

Ai2       ^22      Ajj 


^^13    '^as     —^ 
AAA 


and 


g.g.^"    for    ,.,y,,3. 


xi     VX2     Gj 


The   performance    of    the    substitution    on    the    left-hand   side 
changes  the  matrix  M  into  M"^  M  M"*,  that  is,  M"\  and  we  have 

or.     or.     cr.  =       |l    +    Vj,    +    tl  ^ 


M- 


Gi 


Go 


G« 


The  repetition  of  the  substitution  upon^this  equation,   and   the 
application  of  the  same  process  to  the  equation 


1 


*  Jacobi's  enunciation  of  this  is  ' '  In  relationibos  omnibuSi  quae  inter 
Tariabilee  arj ,  xij ,  .  •  .  ,  «n  et  variabiles  ^n  ^s »  •  •  •  i  ^**  locum  habent, 

simnl  loco  ym  poni  posse  ^,  atqne  loco  ar^ 


GjOa  .  .  .  G« 


SiOiiOa, 


Onn 


where  the  Va  correspond  to  the  modem  A's,  and  the  tign  of  equality  is  used 
for  *or/ 


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172  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  HdinJmrgh. 

lead  to  the  result 


th" 


Vh" 


(4)  Combining  this  with  the  result  of  §  2,  we  have  the  general 
theorem : — 

Tfie  orthogonal  substitution  which  changes 

(xi ,  X2 ,  X3)(M)(xi ,  X2 ,  X,)    into     GiJi^  +  Ggy./  +  Gsj,* 
will  change 

(xj ,  X,,  X3)(M'')(xi ,  X,,  X3)       into    G/y,2  +  G/y/  +  G3 V 
where  p  is  any  integer,  positive  or  negative, 

(5)  Since  Gj ,  Gg,  Gg,  are  the  roots  of  the  equation 


a. 


«18 


a22  -  a:    a, 


81 


*82 


28 
«83-^ 


0, 


it  is  at  once  suggested  from  §  4  that  the  equation  whose  roots  are 
the  p^  powers  of  the  roots  of  this  equation  is  got  by  substituting 
for  din  a^2f  •  •  '  9  ^^®  corresponding  elements  of  the  matrix 
which  is  the  p^  power  of 

(  «11      «12      ^8   ) 

I 

'    ^21       ^22      ^28    i 
I    ^1       ^82      ^88      > 

a  theorem  first  formulated  by  Sylvester  in  1852  (v.  Nouv. 
Annales  de  Mat?t.,  xi.  p.  438). 


{Issued  separately  March  17,  1904.) 


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1908-4.]    Prof.  C.  G.  Knott  on  Ocean  Temperatures,  etc.        173 


Ocean  Temperatures  and  Solar  Radiation. 
By  Professor  0.  G.  Knott. 

(Read  February  15,  1904.) 

Two  years  ago  I  communicated  a  short  paper  on  Solar  Radia- 
tion and  Earth  Temperatures  {Proc,  vol.  xxiii.,  pp.  296-311). 
This  paper  had  its  origin  in  a  critical  discussion  of  certain  results 
deduced  by  Dr  Buchan  from  observations  of  Mediterranean  tem- 
peratures which  had  been  made  by  the  staff  of  the  Austrian  war- 
ship Polo.  The  mathematical  method  by  which  I  discussed  the 
relation  between  the  solar  energy  incident  on  the  surface  of  earth 
or  sea,  and  the  comesponding  fluctuations  of  temperature  in  the 
rock  of  the  Calton  Hill  and  the  surface  waters  of  the  Mediter- 
ranean, has  attracted  some  attention  in  America ;  and  correspondence 
with  Professor  Cleveland  Abbe  has  drawn  my  attentidT  again  to 
the  subject.  In  this  paper  I  propose  to  consider  more  carefully  the 
significance  of  the  observations  made  and  published  by  the  Austrians. 
These  are  contained  in  four  quarto  volumes,  which  Dr  Buchan  has 
kindly  placed  in  my  hands  for  the  purposes  of  a  thorough  investi- 
gation from  the  point  of  view  of  solar  radiation.  Dr  Buchan 
clearly  saw  that  something  might  be  made  out  of  these ;  and  the 
results  he  gave  two  and  a  half  years  ago  before  the  Society  indi- 
cated a  penetration  of  solar  heat  every  day  to  a  depth  of  more 
than  100  feet.  The  results  were  based  upon  means  of  tempera- 
ture at  different  depths  grouped  according  to  the  time  of  day  at 
which  they  were  taken.  As  I  showed  in  my  former  paper,  the 
results  so  deduced  indicated  a  daily  penetration  into  the  waters  of 
the  Mediterranean  of  an  amount  of  heat  greater  than  the  sun 
could  supply. 

From  the  point  of  view  of  the  present  inquiry,  the  method 
adopted  by  the  Austrian  observers  is  not  altogether  satisfactory. 
Their  immediate  object  seemed  to  have  been  to  accumulate  a 
sufficient  number  of  temperature  and  salinity  observations  at 
various  depths  and  at  various  stations,  so  as  to  enable  them  to 
draw  isotherms  and  lines  of  equal  salinity  at  different  depths  in 


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174  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh.         [i 

the  eastern  half  of  the  Mediterranean  Sea.  This  they  have 
accomplished,  and  no  doubt  their  results  in  this  respect  are  &irlj 
acciirate.  With  this  object  in  view  they  took  complete  sets  of 
observations  at  as  many  different  stations  as  possible,  and  at 
stations  in  as  many  different  situations  as  possible.  After  finish- 
ing a  set  of  observations  at  one  station  at  early  morning,  they 

Tabls  a. — List  of  Selected  Stations^  with  Latitude,  Longitude 
and  Time  of  Observations, 


Station. 

Long.  E. 

LatN. 

Date. 

Ti  me  of  Observation. 

188 

80** 

14'-1 

32** 

5' -8 

Sept  5 

H.15  to  7   a.ni. 

IW 

81 

12 

81 

68-2 

6 

4.40  „  5.80  p.ni. 

210 

82 

14  '9 

82 

41  -4 

9 

5.30  „  6.15  p.ni. 

212 

88 

19  -9 

82 

89  -5 

10 

6.10  „  7.80  a.m. 

218 

84 

7  7 

82 

45-8 

10 

5.35  „  6.80  p.m. 

219 

84 

28  -9 

38 

20-9 

12 

6.80  „  7.10  a.m. 

220 

88 

38  *9 

88 

15  -8 

12 

8.10  „  4.15  p.m. 

222 

82 

64-1 

83 

14  -5 

13 

6.10  „  7.15  a.m. 

228 

38 

19-6 

38 

88 

13 

6   „  6.45  p.m. 

226 

84 

7-8 

38 

47  -3 

14 

6.15  „  7.30  a.m. 

226 

84 

62-6 

83 

47-6 

14 

6   ,,  6.46  p.m. 

228 

88 

21  -6 

84 

15 

6.10  „  7.80  a.m. 

229 

34 

28  -6 

84 

6-7 

16 

3.15  „  4.20  p.m. 

281 

38 

57-7 

84 

10-5 

16 

6.  5  „  6.50  a.m. 

282 

83 

46  -1 

84 

85-7 

16 

1.  6  „  2   p.m. 

285 

84 

8  -5 

34 

43 

21 

5.55  „   6.15  a.m. 

248 

88 

17 

85 

29  -6 

26 

6.45  „  7.20  a.m. 

260 

88 

2-6 

85 

51 

26 

2.  6  „  2.80  p.m. 

262 

32 

60-2 

85 

57  -2 

27 

7.15  „  9.45  a.m. 

268 

82 

7-4 

85 

40 

27 

4.  2  „  6.  5  p.m. 

257 

31 

29  -1 

34 

82  -1 

28 

2.10  „  6   p.m. 

269 

31 

6-5 

86 

27  1 

29 

6.10  „  6.55  a.m. 

260 

31 

21  -7 

86 

8-9 

29 

2.10  „  6   p.m. 

262 

30 

40  '9 

36 

10-4 

80 

6.30  „  7.  5  a.m. 

264 

30 

19-8 

86 

5  -2 

80 

1.17  „  2.15  p.m. 

would,  for  example,  steam  off  to  another  station  twenty  or  thirty 
miles  distant,  and  make  similar  observations  at  the  new  station  at  a 
later  hour  the  same  day.  They  never  made  two  sets  of  observa- 
tions in  the  morning  and  afternoon  of  the  same  day  at  the  same 
place.  For  our  present  purpose  a  few  days*  steady  observations 
at  the  same  station  would  have  jjiven  more  useful  results  than  can 
be  derived  from  the  observations  as  made.  Still,  by  comparing 
the  temperatures  at  different  depths  at  contiguous  stations,  for 
which  the  times  of  observation  did  not  differ  by  more  than  ten 
or  twelve  hours,  we  may  hope  to  get  some  data  available  for  our 


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1903-4.]   Prof.  C.  G.  Knott  on  Ocean  Temperatures,  etc.        175 

purpose.     It  should  be  said  that  the  Austrian  observers  deserve 
great  credit  for  the  manner  in  which  they  carried  out  the  work. 

A  little  consideration  showed  that  only  a  selection  of  the 
numerous  stations  were  available  for  the  present  inquiry.  Dr 
Buchan  had  already  pointed  out  the  necessity  for  confining  the 


Tablb  B.- 

—Temperatures  at  Various  Depths, 

Depth. 

*-■ _ 

0 

2 

5 

10 

20 

30 

50 

70 

100 

Stfttlon. 

24-0 

188 

26-0 

26-1 

25-9 

25*2 

24-3 

20-0 

191 

27-0 

26-8 

267 

26-6 

25-3 

24-8 

21-8' 

212 

27-8 

27-6 

27-5' 

27-4 

27-3 

26-4 

22-4 

19-9' 

17-5 

213 

28-3 

27-9 

27-8' 

27-8 

27-3 

26-5 

22  7 

20-2' 

180 

219 

277 

27-5 

27-4' 

27-6 

27  0 

25-6 

20-4 

18-4 

17-4 

220 

281 

27-8 

277' 

27-8 

27-2 

25-8 

20-6 

18-5 

17-6 

222 

27-4 

27-2 

27-0' 

27-0 

267 

25-5 

20-5 

18-8 

17-6 

223 

28-3 

27-9 

27-5' 

27-1 

26-9 

25-6 

20-5 

18-7' 

17-4 

225 

27-8 

27-5 

27-4' 

27-3 

26-8 

25-8 

21-1 

18-6 

17-3 

226 

28-1 

27-6 

27-5' 

27-5 

26-9 

26-8 

21-5' 

19-2' 

17-9 

228 

277 

27-8 

277' 

27-5 

27*0 

26-5 

21-3 

19-2' 

17-9 

229 

27-9 

27-8 

277' 

277 

27-2 

24-8' 

19-6 

18-0 

17-3 

231 

267 

267 

26-9' 

27-0' 

26-8 

24-4 

19-2 

18-1' 

17-4 

232 

277 

27-8 

27-8' 

27-6 

25-6 

22-0' 

19  0 

17-9' 

16-8 

235 

27-0 

26-9 

26-8' 

27-0 

257 

21-3 

19-0 

17-8' 

167' 

238 

27-4 

27-4 

27-0' 

26-2 

23-4 

20-4 

18-3 

17-3 

16-8 

248 

267 

26-6 

26-4' 

26-2 

26-4' 

22-4 

19-8' 

18-2' 

16-8' 

250 

26-9 

267 

26-6' 

26-4 

26-2 

23-8 

19-5 

17-6' 

16-4' 

252 

27-0 

26-9 

26-9' 

27-0 

26-1 

24-4 

20-3 

18-4' 

16-9 

253 

27-1 

26-9 

267' 

26-6 

25-4 

22-4 

19-1 

17-7' 

16-5 

257 

26-3 

26-2 

26-0' 

25-8 

25  1 

22-8 

18-1 

17-0' 

16-3 

259 

26-1 

257 

25-5' 

25-3 

24-4 

20-8 

17-8 

16-6 

16-1 

260 

27-0 

26-6 

26-4' 

26-4 

25-8 

21-3 

18-5 

17-4' 

16-5 

262 

27  0 

26-9 

267' 

26-6 

25-5 

22-2 

19-5 

18-3' 

167 

264 

27-4 

27-3 
27-12 

27-0' 
26-98 

267 
26-85 

26-5' 
2608 

23-2' 
23-96 

20-0 
20-02 

18-1 

16-6 
17-05 

Means 

27-3 

18-26 

stations  chosen  to  those  of  deep  water.  Thus  all  the  stations 
near  land,  however  important  their  temperatures  and  salinities 
from  the  point  of  view  of  a  general  survey,  must  obviously  be 
discounted  when  the  question  was  one  of  the  direct  penetration  of 
solar  radiation.  Dr  Buchan  accordingly  picked  out  the  stations 
characterised  by  great  depths  of  water.  I  think,  however,  that 
his  method  of  selection  is  not  altogether  sound.  He  seems  to 
have  aimed  at  getting  as  many  stations  as  possible  without  paying 


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176  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh,  [suss. 

sufficient  heed  to  the  necessity  for  having  them  in  contiguous 
pairs,  so  as  to  have  for  every  morning  set  of  observations  a  corre- 
sponding afternoon  set  not  more  than  twelve  hours  apart  Guided 
by  this  and  other  considerations,  I  found  myself  compelled  to  take 
a  very  limited  selection  of  stations,  all  situated  in  the  Levant. 
These  selected  stations  are  given   in  Table  A,  along  with  their 


Table  C. — Temperature  Differences  at  Various  Depths, 


D    ths. 

— ^>__ 

0 

2 

5 

10 

20 

80 

50 

70 

100 

Station. 

1 

•7 

•8 

1 

1-8 



191-188 

1-4 

•8 

218-212 

•5 

•8 

•8 

•4 

0 

•1 

•3 

"•8 

•5 

220-219 

•4 

•8 

•8 

•2 

•2 

•2 

•2 

•1 

•2 

220-222 

•7 

•6 

•7 

•8 

•6 

•8 

•1 

-    3 

-•2 

228-222 

•9 

•7 

•6 

•1 

•2 

•1 

0 

-    -1 

-•4 

228-226 

•5 

•4 

•1 

—  "2 

•1 

-    -2 

-    -6 

•1 

•1 

226-225 

•3 

•1 

•1 

•2 

•1 

•6 

•4 

•6 

•6 

226-228 

•4 

-•2 

-•2 

0 

-   -1 

-    -2 

•2 

0 

0 

229-228 

•2 

0 

0 

•2 

•2 

-1-7 

-1^7 

-1-2 

-•6 

229-281 

1-2 

11 

•8 

7 

•4 

•4 

•4 

-     1 

-•1 

232-281 

1 

1-1 

•9 

•6 

-1-2 

-2-4 

-    '2 

-     2 

-•6 

288-286 

•4 

•5 

•2 

-•8 

-2-8 

-    -9 

-    '7 

-   -6 

-•4 

260-248 

•2 

•1 

•2 

•2 

•8 

14 

-    8 

-   -6 

-•4 

250-262 

-1 

-•2 

-•3 

-•6 

•1 

-    -6 

-    -8 

-    -8 

-•6 

258-252 

•1 

0 

-•2 

-•5 

-    -7 

-2^0 

-1-2 

-   -7 

-•4 

257-259 

•2 

•5 

•5 

•5 

•7 

2-0 

•8 

•4 

•2 

260-269 

•9 

•9 

•9 

11 

Vi 

•5 

•7 

•8 

•4 

260-262 

0 

-•8 

-•8 

—  '2 

•8 

-  •o 

-1 

-    -9 

-•2 

264-262 

•4 

•4 

•3 

•1 

0 

1-0 

•5 

-    -2 

-1 

Meana 

0^-48 

0''87 

0**-29 

0^-22 

O'^OO 

-0"-08 

-0'-09 

-0'-18 

-O'^ll 

Probable  ( 
Error    S 

±057 

±065 

±•062 

±•088 

±12 

... 

... 

... 

... 

latitudes  and  longitudes,  and  the  date  and  hour  at  which  the 
observations  were  made.  The  number  of  the  station  is  the  number 
in  the  Pola  reports.  All  the  observations  here  discussed  were 
made  in  September  of  1892. 

Table  B  contains  the  corrected  observations  of  temperature  for 
all  these  stations  at  the  depths  0,  2,  5,  10,  20,  30,  50,  70,  100 
metres.  Most  of  the  observations  at  the  depth  5  are  interpolated, 
and  are  so  entered  in  the  Beport.  The  interpolation  can  be 
effected  with  considerable  accuracy  since  the  law  of  diminution  of 


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1908-4.]   Prof.  C.  G.  Knott  on  Ocean  Temperatures,  etc.        177 

temperature  with  increase  of  depth  is  very  steadily  maintained 
throughout  the  whole  series  of  oheervations,  and  is  hest  given  by 
the  means  of  all  (see  Table  B,  and  the  figure  on  page  181).   - 

Table  C  contains  the  differences  of  temperatures  at  correspond- 
ing depths  at  pairs  of  stations,  at  which  the  times  of  observations 
differed  by  approximately  half  a  day.  The  precise  difference  in 
time  in  any  case  can  be  found  from  Table  A.  In  all  it  will  be 
seen  that  there  are  just  nineteen  pairs  of  stations  available  for  the 
inquiry.  If  the  waters  to  a  depth  of  100  metres  were  heated  up 
during  the  day  by  direct  solar  radiation,  and  cooled  off  again  during 
the  night,  these  differences  should  all  be  positive.  A  glance  shows 
that  out  of  the  nineteen  there  is  one  negative  value  at  the  surface, 
three  at  a  depth  of  2  metres,  four  at  5  metres  depth,  five  at  10, 
four  at  20,  eight  at  30,  eight  at  50,  eleven  at  70,  and  eleven  at 
100.  At  depths  greater  than  20  metres  there  is  no  evidence  of 
penetration  of  solar  radiation.  Even  at  20  metres  it  is  doubtful 
if  we  can  find  any  evidence  of  direct  daily  heating.  We  may, 
however,  take  the  means  of  the  differences  at  each  depth,  and  then 
test  the  sufficiency  of  the  observations  by  calculating  the  probable 
errors  in  the  usual  way.     The  result  is  as  follows : — 


Depth  iB 

Mean  DaUy  Oifferenoe 

Probable 

of  Teinpentnre  (C). 

Error. 

0 

0-48 

±0-067 

2 

0-87 

±0065 

5 

0-29 

±0-062 

10 

0-22 

±0-088 

20 

0-09 

±012 

80 

-0-08 

50 

-0-09 

... 

70 

-0-18 

... 

100 

-0-11 

... 

The  thermometers  read  to  tenths  of  degrees,  so  that  little  value 
can  be  attached  to  the  second  decimal  place. 

It  would  obviously  be  wasted  labour  to  calculate  the  probable 
errors  for  the  last  four  depths.  At  depth  20  metres  the  probable 
error  is  numerically  greater  than  the  mean ;  so  that  we  can  say 
nothing  definite  as  to  the  effect  of  solar  radiation  at  this  depth. 

The  errors  are  so  great  that  we  may,  without  running  any  risk 
of  introducing  greater  errors,  combine  these  numbers  by  a  linear 
formula,  assuming  that  the  difference  of  temperature  t  between 
morning  and  afternoon  in  the  waters  of  the  Mediterranean  during 

PROC.  ROY.  BOC.  BDIN. — VOL.  XXV.  12 


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178  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh,         [i 

the  month  of  September  is  connected   with  the  depth  by  the 

formula 

<  =  a  +  fee. 

Combining  the  first  four  temperature  diflferences  down  to  a  depth 
of  10  metres  by  the  method  of  least  squares  we  find 

t  »  0-44  -  0-025X. 

If  we  include  the  difference  for  the  20-metre  depth  we  find 

t  =  0-42  -  0018a;. 

Another  result  obtained  by  using  twenty-seven  selected  pairs  of 
stations  instead  of  nineteen  is 

/  =  0-47  -  0"02a;. 
For  this  last  case  the  mean  differences  at  the  four  smaller  depths 
were  049,  042,  0-33,  028. 

If  we  compare  the  values  of  the  mean  differences  of  temperature 
here  calculated  with  the  values  given  in  the  former  paper,  we  see 
that  the  present  values  derived  from  a  carefully-selected  number 
of  stations  are  distinctly  smaller,  and  that  no  confidence  can  be 
placed  upon  the  means  for  depths  greater  than  10  metres. 

We  may  now  complete  the  investigation  by  calculating  how 
much  heat  accumulation  and  loss  of  heat  day  by  day  this  fluctua- 
tion of  temperature  in  the  Mediterranean  means.  This  is  at  once 
done  by  integrating  the  expression  tdx  from  x  =  0  Xo  x  equal  to 
the  value  for  which  t  vanishes.  These  values  are  for  the  three 
formulae  given  above — 17*6,  23-3,  and  23*5  respectively.  Integrat- 
ing for  these  cases  and  using  the  corresponding    superior    limit 

for  X  we  find 

0-44^  -  00125a;2  =  3*9 

0-42x  -  0-009  x^  =  4-9 

Oilx  -  0-01     ir2  =  5-5 

Changing  the  unit  from  the  metre  to  the  centimetre  we  find  390, 
490,  550  calories  as  estimated  values  for  the  amount  of  solar 
radiation  which  heats  the  Mediterranean  waters  daily  during  the 
month  of  September.  The  probable  errors  in  each  of  these 
determinations  are  large,  so  that  only  the  first  significant  figure  is 
of  any  real  value.  Let  us  consider  450  ±  50  as  a  fair  average,  and 
compare  this  with  the  amount  of  solar  energy  available  as  cal- 


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1908-4.]    Prof.  C.  G.  Knott  on  Ocean  TemperaJtv/res,  etc.        179 

colated  in  the  previous  paper.  On  page  299  in  that  paper  a  table 
is  given  from  which  we  may  estimate  the  amount  of  solar  energy 
available  in  one  day  in  the  middle  of  September  for  localities  in 
the  latitude  of  33*"  N.  Taking  the  average  declination  of  the  sun 
during  September  at  about  3*,  we  find  for  the  solar  energy  supplied 
in  one  day  the  value  6x117  =  700.  According  to  the  present 
calculation  we  conclude  that  about  two-thirds  of  the  solar  energy 
incident  on  the  surface  of  the  Mediterranean  Sea  heats  the  surface 
waters  through  a  depth  of  nearly  20  metres.  This,  perhaps,  is 
not  an  unreasonable  result,  and  is  an  important  correction  upon 
the  earlier  result,  as  showing  that  the  Austrian  observations  are 
from  this  point  of  view  in  sufficient  accordance  with  Langle/s 
valuable  investigations  into  the  value  of  the  solar  constant. 

Dr  Buchan  has  drawn  attention  to  the  importance  of  the  obser- 
vations in  relation  to  the  manner  in  which  the  ocean  waters  (first) 
gain  their  heat  in  the  day,  and  (second)  lose  it  again  at  night.  But 
here  again  their  value  would  have  been  greatly  increased  if  the 
observers  had  had  this  particular  problem  present  to  their  mind  when 
the  observations  were  being  made.  Had  the  Polaj  on  one  particu- 
larly quiet  sunny  day,  in  the  centre  of  the  Levant,  far  from  land, 
made  throughout  a  complete  day  of  twenty-four  hours  a  succession 
of  complete  sets  of  temperature  readings  at  the  various  depths, 
at  intervals,  say,  of  two  or  three  hours,  a  great  deal  of  valuable 
information  bearing  on  this  question  would  have  been  obtained. 
The  conditions  of  the  survey  undertaken  quite  precluded  this. 
Fortunately,  however,  observations  of  the  temperature  of  the 
surface  waters  at  midnight  were  frequently,  though  not  regularly, 
taken.  By  comparing  these  with  the  preceding  afternoon  tem- 
peratures and  the  succeeding  morning  temperatures,  and  taking 
into  consideration  the  air  temperatures  at  the  same  times,  we  gain 
distinct  evidence  of  convection  in  the  surface  layers.  The  data 
are  given  in  Table  D,  sixteen  diflferent  cases  in  all.  In  only  two 
cases  was  the  early  morning  temperature  lower  than  the  immedi- 
ately preceding  midnight  temperature;  in  two  cases  it  was  the 
same ;  in  all  other  cases  it  was  higher,  sometimes  markedly  so. 
In  thirteen  out  of  the  sixteen  cases  the  air  temperature  was  lower 
than  that  of  the  water  at  early  morning  ;  and  in  eleven  of  these  it 
was  lower  even  than  the  contiguous  midnight  temperature.     We 


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180  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinbv/rgh.         [i 


may  therefore  safely  conclude  that  the  warming  of  the  water 
between  midnight  and  early  morning  was  not  due  to  atmospheric 
influence.  The  simple  reason  is,  in  fact^  not  far  to  seek«  By 
whatever  processes  the  daily  heating  of  the  waters  is  produced,  it 


Tablb  D.- 

-Table  Showing  Convection  During  Cooling. 

Station. 

Hour. 

Surface 
Temp. 

Air 
Temp. 

SUtioii. 

Hour. 

Surface 
Temp. 

Air 
Temp. 

198 
194 
195 

210 
211 
212 

7.40p. 
I1.45p. 
6a. 

5.80p. 

12.20a. 

6.10a. 

5.85p. 

12.30a. 

6.8a. 

26-9 
26-5 
27-1 

27-6 
26-0 

238 
234 
235 

12.80p. 
la. 
5.55a. 

26-9 
26-6 
27  0 

30-2 
26'-5 

26-6 
26-9 
27-8 

28-0 
25'-6 

238 
289 
240 

243 
244 
245 

6.5p. 
12.1a. 
6.45a. 

27-4 
27-2 
27-6 

28-1 
26*6 

218 
214 
215 

28-8 
27-5 
28-1 

26-9 
26*7 

121p. 
la. 
6.14a. 

27-8 
27-2 
27-2 

27-6 
2*6*-5 

27-8 
24-6 

217 
218 
219 

220 

221 
222 

2.10p. 

12.15a. 

6.80a. 

28*8 
27-6 
27-7 

28-5 
26-0 

253 
254 
255 

257 
258 
259 

260 
261 
262 

268 
269 
270 

4.2p. 

12.20a. 

6.10a. 

2-lOp. 

12.80a. 

6.10a. 

2.10p. 

12.80a. 

6.80a. 

1.45p. 

12.10a. 

6.10a. 

2.45p. 

12.10a. 

6.20.1. 

27-1 
25-9 
25-9 

8.10p. 

12.30a. 

6.10a. 

28-1 

27-2. 

27-4 

27-5 
27-8 

26-3 
25-8 
26  1 

26-5 
2*4-2 

27-6 
2*7*-3 

24-5 
23*-2 

228 
224 
225 

6p. 

12.80a. 
6.15fl. 

6p. 

12.30a. 
6.10a. 

3.15p. 

12.20a. 

6.5a. 

28-8 
26-9 

27-8 

281 
27-3 
27-7 

27-9 
26-8 
267 

27-9 
27'l 

28-3 
28'-5 

80-0 
27-5 

27-0 
26-5 
27-0 

226 
227 
228 

24  1 
28-4 
237 

229 
23n 
231 

272 
273 
274 

26-3 
25-6 
24-6 

27-6 
2*8*-9 

is  evident  that  as  the  sun  sinks  the  surface  layer  of  the  water  will 
begin  to  cool  by  radiation.  Suppose  it  to  cool  by  half  a  degree 
centigrade :  it  will  then  become  denser  than  the  slightly  warmer 


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1903-4.]   Prof.  C.  G.  Knott  on  Ocean  Temperatures,  etc.        181 

water  beneath ;  and  if  it  could  sink  without  loss  of  heat  it  would 
find  its  position  of  equilibrium  at  a  depth  of  about  5  metres. 
This,  of  course,  is  a  very  crude  description  of  what  really  occurs  ; 
but  it  is  sufficient  to  indicate  the  general  nature  of  the  convective 
process.  The  steady  cooling  by  radiation  of  the  surface  waters 
must  be  accompanied  by  a  steady  vertical  convection  determined 
by  the  average  temperature  gradient  and  the  viscosity  of  the 
liquid.  This  will  go  on  steadily  until  an  approximate  equilibrium 
is  reached,  probably  towards  early  morning ;  and  it  is  evident  that 
by  this  process  a  considerable  depth  of  surface  waters  will  be 
cooled.* 

Of  no  small  importance  with  respect  to  the  question  of  the 
penetration  of  solar  heat  through  the  surface  waters  of  an  ocean  or 
lake  is  the  manner  in  which  the  temperature  falls  off  as  the  depth 
increases.  The  curve  shown  in  the  figure  represents  the  means 
given  in  Table  B,  and  may  be  taken  as  typical  of  all  cases  in 
which  the  body  of  water  is  above  the  temperature  of  maximum 
density. 

It  will  be  seen  at  a  glance  that  the 
vertical  distribution  of  temperature 
follows  a  somewhat  complex  law.  As 
the  depth  increases  the  temperature 
falls  off,  first  fairly  rapidly,  then  more 
slowly  until  a  depth  of  20  metres  is 
reached.  Thereafter  a  rapid  rate  of 
diminution  sets  in,  which  attains  its 
maximum  at  a  depth  of  about  30  metres.  The  rate  of  decrease  of 
temperature  with  increase  of  depth  then  begins  to  diminish,  and  con- 
tinues falling  off  till  the  greatest  depths  are  reached.  It  is  evident 
that  this  fairly  permanent  vertical  distribution  of  temperature  can- 
not be  explained  by  conduction  alone.  Probably  for  depths  greater 
than  40  metres  the  main  factor  is  conduction  of  heat  from  the  upper 
warmer  layers  to  the  cooler  lower  layers.  But  it  is  quite  clear 
that  some  other  factor  powerfully  affects  the  distribution  of  tem- 

*  For  an  interesting  discnssion  of  similar  phenomena  in  the  fresh-water 
lakes  of  the  Austrian  Alps,  see  ''Seestudien,"  by  Professor  E.  Richter  (^^o- 
grvbphische  Abhandhmgm,  edited  by  Professor  Penck,  Vienna,  Band  VI., 
Heft  2,  1897)— an  important  memoir. 


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182  Proceedings  of  Boyal  Society  of  Edinburgh.         [ 

perature  in  the  surface  layer  above  20  metres  depth.  This  factor 
can  only  be  convection,  or,  let  us  say,  division  of  liquid.  As 
already  shown,  this  convection  will  set  in  as  the  sun  sinks  and  the 
day  cools  towards  night,  and  will  continue  till  early  morning.  No 
doubt  also  surface  waves  and  ripples  due  to  wind  will  aid  this  con- 
vection ;  nor  can  we  leave  out  of  account  the  vertical  migration  of 
fish  and  other  denizens  of  the  deep.  Gonvective  movements  may 
also  occur  during  the  day  in  bodies  of  salt  water,  the  surface  layer 
of  which,  in  virtue  of  evaporation  and  consequent  increase  of 
salinity,  may  become  denser  than  the  slightly  cooler  water  immedi- 
ately below  it.  This  last-named  factor  we  should  not  expect  to 
find  in  the  case  of  fresh-water  lakes.  That  the  main  causes  are, 
however,  the  same  in  fresh-water  lakes  as  in  salt-water  seas  is 
proved  by  the  general  resemblance  in  the  law  of  variation  of 
temperature  with  depth  in  the  two  types  of  cases.  From  the  data 
furnished  by  Professor  Bichter  in  the  memoir  already  referred  to, 
and  from  similar  data  supplied  by  W.  F.  Ganong,  who  studied  the 
vertical  distribution  of  temperature  in  certain  American  lakes,  we 
notice,  however,  one  striking  diflference  between  the  fresh-water 
lakes  and  the  Mediterranean  Sea.  In  the  Mediterranean  Sea  the 
most  rapid  vertical  variation  of  temperature  occurs  at  a  depth  of 
30  metres  ;  in  the  fresh-water  lakes,  on  the  other  hand,  the  corre- 
sponding maximum  gradient  occurs  at  much  less  depths — namely, 
from  6  to  12  metres.  The  reason  for  this  diflTerence  may  probably 
be  found  in  the  following  considerations.  In  the  first  place,  the 
somewhat  higher  temperature  of  the  Mediterranean  Sea  will  no 
doubt  mean  a  greater  depth  of  the  layer  of  quickest  variation ;  but 
this  can  hardly  explain  the  magnitude  of  the  difference.  It  must 
be  remembered,  however,  that  in  the  case  of  the  fresh-water  lakes 
the  vertical  distribution  of  temperature  experiences  a  complete 
change  during  the  winter  months  when  the  mass  of  water  is  at  or 
below  the  temperature  of  maximum  density.  Hence  the  summer 
distribution  of  temperature,  which  resembles  in  type  the  distribu- 
tion throughout  the  whole  year  in  the  waters  of  the  Mediterranean, 
has  just  time  to  establish  itself  before  the  autumn  and  winter 
conditions  set  in  again,  and  finally  overturn  the  whole  type  of 
distribution.  On  the  other  hand,  in  the  Mediterranean  the  waters 
are  never  cooled  sufficiently  so  as  to  come  within  sight  of  the 


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1908-4.]   Prof.  C.  G.  Knott  on  Ocean  Temperatwes,  etc.         183 

temperature  of  the  maximum  density  even  of  fresh  water,  and 
consequently  the  same  type  of  vertical  temperature  distribution 
remains  permanent  throughout  the  year.  In  the  Mediterranean 
we  are  therefore  dealing  with  a  permanent  average  distribution  of 
temperature  which  is  the  steady  resultant  eflfect  of  ages  of  solar 
radiation,  convective  cooling,  and  heat  conduction,  down  from  the 
warmer  surface  waters  and  up  from  the  slightly  warmer  earth 
below  the  cold  bottom  waters. 

Superposed  upon  this  steady  average  distribution  we  have  the 
daily  see-saw  of  temperature  due  to  direct  solar  radiation  and  to 
the  complex  indirect  effects  which  accompany  it.  As  the  sun  rises 
the  surface  waters  become  heated,  and  to  some  extent  evaporate. 
This  may  cause  increased  salinity  in  the  surface  waters,  and  give 
rise  to  gravitation  convection  currents.  Ripples,  waves,  migration 
of  fish  aid  the  mixing  of  the  waters,  so  that  down  to  a  depth 
of  perhaps  5  or  10  metres  the  temperature  distribution  is  largely 
affected  by  these  causes,  the  pure  conduction  effect  being  compara- 
tively unimportant.  The  direct  heating  effect  of  solar  radiation  at 
depths  greater  than  15  metres  may  be  regarded  as  negligible, 
because  of  the  great  absorption  of  solar  energy  in  the  water  near 
the  surface.  From  the  Pola  records  we  know  that  luminosity 
can  penetrate  to  considerable  depths,  for  white  objects  at  depths  of 
50  metres  were  frequently  visible.  But  these  rays  must  be  robbed 
of  by  far  the  greater  part  of  their  original  energy,  which,  indeed, 
has  gone  to  heat  the  surface  waters.  As  evening  comes  on 
evaporation  will  largely  cease,  the  surface  waters  will  cool  off  by 
radiation,  and  convection  will  be  set  up  which  will  last  well 
through  the  night,  warmer  water  continually  welling  up  to  replace 
the  cooler  heavier  water  which  sinks.  By  this  means  the  tempera- 
ture throughout  the  upper  layers  becomes  steadily  reduced,  and 
the  heat  gained  in  the  day  is  lost  at  night.  During  the  day  the 
process  of  heating  is  mainly  due  to  the  radiant  energy  of  the  sun 
being  absorbed  by  the  water  near  the  surface,  aided  by  mechanical 
mixing  of  the  layers  of  water.  At  night  the  process  of  convection 
tends  to  bring  to  the  surface  all  the  water  comprised  within  a 
layer  whose  depth  will  depend  upon  the  temperature  reached 
during  the  day,  the  rate  of  cooling  of  the  surface  during  the 
night,   and   the   viscosity  of  the   water.     The    depth   to  which 


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1 84  Proceedings  of  Roycd  Society  of  Edinburgh.         [^ 

solar  radiation  penetrates  in  the  waters  of  the  Mediterranean 
does  not  exceed  20  metres,  and  the  accumulation  of  heat  within 
this  layer  during  the  sunshine  of  a  September  day  may  be 
estimated  at  450  calories  per  square  centimetre  of  surface,  or 
about  two-thirds  of  the  available  radiant  energy  incident  on  the 
surface. 

These,  broadly  speaking,  are  the  conclusions  to  which  a  study  of 
the  Pola  observations  seems  to  lead.  But  it  is  obvious  that  a 
much  more  valuable  set  of  data  would  be  obtained  by  the  use  of 
several  platinum  thermometers  permanently  fixed  in  mid-ocean  at 
convenient  depths,  and  read  at  fairly  frequent  intervals  through- 
out the  day  and  night,  under  different  atmospheric  conditions  as 
regards  cloudiness  and  wind. 


{Isiiied  separately  April  4,  1904.) 


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1908-4.]       Lord  Kelvin  on  Two^imemional  Waves,  185 


On  Deep-water  Two-dimensional  Waves  produced  by 
any  given  Initiating  Disturbance.     By  Lord  Kelvin. 

(Bead  February  1,  1904.     MS.  receiTed  February  18,  1904.) 

§  1.  Consider  frictionless  water  in  a  straight  canal,  infinitely  long 
and  infinitely  deep,  with  vertical  sides.  Let  it  be  disturbed  from 
rest  by  any  change  of  pressure  on  the  surface,  uniform  in  every 
line  perpendicular  to  the  plane  sides,  and  left  to  itself  under 
constant  air  pressure.  It  is  required  to  find  the  displacement  and 
velocity  of  every  particle  of  the  water  at  any  future  time.  Our 
initial  condition  will  be  fully  specified  by  a  given  normal  com- 
ponent velocity,  and  a  normal  component  displacement,  at  every 
part  of  the  surface. 

§  2.  Taking  O,  any  point  at  a  distance  h  above  the  undisturbed 
water  level,  draw  O  X  parallel  to  the  length  of  the  canal,  and  O  Z 
vertically  downwards.  Let  ^,  ^  be  the  displacement -components 
of  any  particle  of  the  water  whose  undisturbed  position  is  (a,  z). 
We  suppose  the  disturbance  infinitesimal ;  by  which  we  mean 
that  the  change  of  distance  between  any  two  particles  of  water  is 
infinitely  small  in  comparison  with  their  undisturbed  distance ; 
and  the  line  joining  them  experiences  changes  of  direction  which 
are  infinitely  small  in  comparison  with  the  radian.  Water  being 
assumed  frictionless,  its  motion,  started  primarily  from  rest  by 
pressure  applied  to  the  free  surface,  is  essentially  irrotational. 
Hence  we  have 

^=^*(«.M);  {^^(-.M);  ^=^^^;  ^4/ •    (D; 

where  tf>(x,  z,  t),  or  <^  as  we  may  write  it  for  brevity  when  con- 
venient, is  a  function  of  the  variables  which  may  be  called  the 
displacement-potential ;  and  ^{x,  2,  t)  is  what  is  commonly  called 
the  velocity-potential.  Thus  a  knowledge  of  the  function  <f>, 
for  all  values  of  x,  z,  t,  completely  defines  the  displacement 
and  the  velocity  of  the  fluid.  And,  by  the  fundamentals  of 
hydrokinetics,  a  knowledge  of  <f>  for  every   point  of  the   free 


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186  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh.         [sns. 

surface  suffices  to  determine  its  value  throughout  the  water ;  in 
virtue  of  the  equation 

dx^      dz^ 

The  motion  being  infinitesimal,  and  the  density  being  taken  as 
unity,  another  application  of  the  fundamental  hydrokinetics  shows 
that,  as  found  by  Cauchy  and  Poisson, 

^.n  =  ,(.-/.  +  £)-|t  =  ,(.-.)./|-^     .     (3); 

where  g  denotes  gravity  ;  n  the  uniform  atmospheric  pressure  on 
the  free  surface ;  and  p  the  pressure  at  the  point  (a:,  z  +  {)  within 
the  fluid. 

§  S.  To  apply  (3)  to  the  wave-surface,  put  in  it,  « =  ^ ;  it  gives 

«(SL-(^).-. <')^ 

and  therefore  if  we  coidd  find  a  solution  of  this  equation  for  all 
values  of  2,  with  (2)  satisfied,  we  shoidd  have  a  solution  of  our 
present  problem.  Now  we  can  find  such  a  solution ;  by  a  curi- 
ously altered  application  of  Fourier's  celebrated  solution 

r-"  dv       d^v  1 

«  +  .)-..--    for  ;^  =  *^.J 

his  equation  for  the  linear  conduction  of  heat.  Change  t  +  CyXj  kj 
into  z  +  tXyt,  g~^  respectively : — we  have  (4),  and  we  see  that  a 
solution  of  it  is 

7(huf^'    <^)' 

which  also  satisfies  (2)  because  any  function  of  z  +  la;  satisfies  (2) 
if  I  denotes  J -l.  Hence  if  {RS}  denotes  a  realisation*  by 
taking  half  sum  of  what  is  written  after  it  with  ±  t,  we  have,  as 
a  real  solution  of  (4)  for  our  problem 

^^x,z,t)={RH}  j^-^^e*'-^^    ....     (6). 

*  A  very  easy  way  of  effeotiiig  the  realisations  in  (6)  and  (9)  is  by  aid  of 
De  Moivre's  theorem  with,  for  one  angle  concerned  in  it,  x^tan-^x/a ;  and 
another  angle  =  ^^/4(i? + a^. 


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1903-4.]       Lord  Kelvin  on  Tivo-diviensional  Waves.  187 


where  p^  =  z^  +  x^ 


i 


('), 


(8). 


where  0  =  tan" 


The  sign  of  »J{p  -  z)  changes  when  x  passes  through  zero. 

Going  back  now  to  (5),  and  denoting  by  {RD}  the  difference  of 
ite  values  for  ±  i  divided  by  2t,  we  have  another  solution  of  our 
problem  essentially  different  from  (6),  as  follows 

,i>(x.z,t)=m)  J^^^e^>        .    .     .    (9). 
=  ^[70>  +  .)^^^-V0>-)cosf^].^       (10). 

^^Un(^^o-^y^    (^»>- 

§  4.  The  annexed  diagram,  fig.  1,  represents  for  ^  =  0  the  solu- 
tions 2^  and  i<f>  as  functions  of  x,  with  z  =  1  for  convenience  in 
the  drawing.  The  formulas  which  we  find  by  taking  ^  =  0 
in  (7)  X  J2  and  (10)  x  J2  are 

Before  passing  to  the  practical  interpretation  of  our  solutions, 
remark  first  that  (12)  contain  full  specifications  of  two  distinct 
initiating  disturbances;  in  each  of  which  <f>  may  be  taken  as  a 
displacement-potential,  or  as  a  velocity-potential,  or  as  a  horizontal 
displacement-component  or  velocity,  or  as  a  vertical  displacement- 
component  or  velocity.  Thus  we  have  really  preparation  for  six  dif- 
ferent cases  of  motion,  of  which  we  shall  choose  one,  -  {=  ^2  x  (7), 
for  detailed  examination. 

§  5.  Taking  a  =  /i  =  1,  for  the  water  surface,  let  the  two  curves  of 
figure  1  represent  initial  displacements^  (12),  of  the  water  surface, 
left  to  itself  with  the  water  everywhere  at  rest.  The  displacements 
at  any  subsequent  time  t  are  expressed  in  real  symbols  by  (7)  (10) 
without  the  divisor  ^2,  and  by  (8)  (11)  with  a  factor  J2  intro- 
duced ;  either  of  which  may  be  chosen  according  to  convenience 
in  calculation.     One  set  has  thus  been  calculated  from  (8),  with 


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188  Proceediiiys  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh.  [•■ 


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1908-4.]       Lord  Kelvin  on  Two-dimensional  Waves.  189 

^ -  4,  and  «» 1,  for  six  values  of  t ;  '6,  1*5,  2,  2*5,  and  6 ;  and  for 
a  sufficiently  large  number  of  values  of  a;  to  represent  the  results 
by  the  curves  shown  in  figs.  2  and  3.  Except  for  the  time  <  =  5, 
each  curve  shows  sufficiently  all  the  most  interesting  characteristics 
of  the  figure  of  the  water  at  the  corresponding  time.  The  curve 
for  t  =  5  does  not  perceptibly  leave  the  zero  line  at  distances 
x<\'S  ;  but  if  we  could  see  it,  it  would  show  us  two  and  a  half 
wavelets  possessing  very  interesting  characteristics;  shown  in 
the  table  of  numbers,  §  7  below,  by  which  we  see  that  several 
different  curves  with  scales  of  ordinates  magnified  from  one  to 
one  thousand,  and  to  one  million,  and  to  ten  thousand  million, 
would  be  needed  to  exhibit  them  graphically. 

§  6.  Looking  to  the  curves  for  <  =  0  and  <  =  ^ ;  we  see  that  at 
first  the  water  rises  at  all  distances  from  the  middle  of  the 
disturbance  greater  than  x « 1*9,  and  falls  at  less  distances.  And 
we  see  that  the  middle  (x  =  0)  remains  a  crest  (or  positive  maximum) 
till  a  very  short  time  before  <  =  J,  when  it  begins  to  be  a  hollow. 
A  crest  then  comes  into  existence  beside  it  and  begins  to  travel 
outwards.  On  the  third  curve,  <=  1,  we  see  this  crest,  travelled 
to  a  distance  a:=l'7,  from  the  middle  where  it  came  into  being; 
and  on  the  fourth,  fifth,  sixth,  seventh  curves  (figs.  1,  2)  we 
see  it  got  to  distances  2*9,  4*8,  6*5,  22,  at  the  times  1^,  2,  2^, 
5.  This  crest  travelling  rightwards  on  our  diagrams  has  its 
anterior  slope  very  gradual  down  to  the  undisturbed  level  at 
X  =  00  .  Its  posterior  slope  is  much  steeper ;  and  ends  at  the  bottom 
of  the  hollow  in  the  middle  of  the  disturbance,  at  times  from  ^  =  | 
to  ^=1^.  At  some  time,  which  must  be  very  soon  after  ^=1  J, 
this  hollow  begins  to  travel  rightwards  from  the  middle,  followed 
by  a  fresh  crest  shed  off  from  the  middle.  At  t-2,  the  hollow 
has  got  as  far  as  «  =  '9 ;  at  ^  =  2  J,  and  5,  respectively,  it  has  reached 
z  =  1*75.  and  x  =  6'7.  Looking  in  imagination  to  the  extension  of 
our  curves  leftwards  from  the  middle  of  the  diagram,  we  find  an 
exact  counterpart  of  what  we  have  been  examining  on  the  right. 
Thus  we  see  an  initial  elevation,  symmetrical  on  the  two  sides 
of  a  convex  crest,  of  height  1*41  above  the  undisturbed  level, 
sinking  in  the  middle  and  rising  on  the  two  fianks.  The  crest 
becomes  less  and  less  convex  till  it  gets  down  to  height  Tl,  when 
it  becomes    concave;   and   two    equal   and    similar   wave -crests 


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190  Proceedings  of  Royal  Sooieiy  of  Edinburgh.  [ssba. 

are  shed  off  on  the  two  sides,  travelling  away  from  it  rightwaids 
and  leftwards  with  accelerated  velocities,  each  remaining  for  ever 
convex.  Thus  we  see  the  beginnings  of  two  endless  processions  of 
waves  travelling  outwards  in  the  two  directions;  originating  as 
infinitesimal  wavelets  shed  off  on  the  two  sides  of  the  middle  line. 
Each  crest  and  each  hollow  travels  with  increasing  velocity.  Each 
wave-length,  from  crest  to  crest,  or  from  hollow  to  hollow,  becomes 
longer  and  longer  as  it  advances  outwards ;  all  this  according  to 
law  fully  expressed  in  (8)  of  §  3  above. 

§  7.  Here  is  now  the  table  of  numbers  promised  in  §  5  above ;  it 
practically  defines  the  forms  and  magnitudes  of  the  two  and  a  half 
wavelets,  between  a*  =  0  and  a;  =  2,  which  the  space-curve  f or  /  =  5 
(figs.  2  and  3)  fails  to  show. 

p2  =  aj2  +  /ia;  h^X,  g  =  i',  <  =  6;     ~£=  V- sin  (^Vd)c"^. 


Col.l. 

Col.  2. 

Col.  8.    !     Col.  4. 

Col.  6. 

Col.  6. 

Col.  7. 

X. 

^/^ 

1 
II 

98 

0||8 

P 

I* 

1^0000 

•sis  *** 

14142 

T 

+  10-10-1963 

0 

1-4142 

10000 

10-10-1357 

•06    '  1-4140 

•9997 

1-4140 

•3434 

„    -1478 

„   »      0717 

•064 

0 

0 

•10    ;  1-410 

•9987 

1-409 

-    -7641 

n    -1778 

-lO-w-1891 

•16 

1-407 

•9972 

1-403 

-    -8997 

„    -3066 

,.   M     -8882 

•20 

1-401 

9962 

1-393 

-     0032 

„    •3682 

M   ,.      0016 

•202 

0 

0 

•30 

1-884 

•9894 

1^370 

•8997 

..    1-094 

+  10-W1-862 

•868 

... 

0 

0 

•40 

1^862 

•9820 

VZU 

-    -6461 

„  "4-866 

-  10-W3-243 

•60 

1-309 

•9688 

1-262 

-    -2341 

„    108-9 

„   ..     8r84 

•682 

... 

... 

... 

0 

..• 

0 

•80 

r249 

•9437 

1179 

•7598 

10-5  -02896 

+  10  « -0227 

1-00 

1190 

•i^239 

1-099 

•8962 

.,    -2958 

.,   „     -8162 

1*26 

rii8 

•9015       1-007 

■6831 

„    5-798 

„  M     4-424 

1^50 

1-063 

•8817         -9287 

•4923 

.,    46-63 

,.   „     23^67 

1^517 

0 

0 

1-76 

•9961 

•8661 

•8616 

-    •6832 

„    212-5 

-10-5  144^6 

2-00 

•94.56 

■8606 

•8043 

-    -9997 

„    848-2 

„   „     801-9 

2-60 

•8612 

•8243 

•7142 

-     1688 

•08180 

.,   n     447-3 

2-64 

0 

0 

8  00 

•7952 

•81 13 

•6450 

•8296 

•08210 

•0642 

8-50 

•7411 

•7980 

•5917 

•9473 

•1616                 ^1064 

CorUimied  on  p,  198. 


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1908-4.]       Lord  Kelvin  on  TwO'dimensional  Waves.  1 91 


o 

& 


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192  Proceedings  of  ItoycU  Society  of  Edinburgh.         [i 


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To  prevent  delay,  authors  residing  abroad  should   appoint  some  one 
residing  in  this  country  to  correct  their  proofs. 

4.  Additions  to  a  Paper  after  it  has  been*  finally  handed  in  for 
publication,  if  accepted  by  the  Council,  will  be  treated  and  dated  as 
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after  the  original  paper. 

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the  Proceedings,  provided  they  are  sent  along  with  the  original  paper. 

6.  Separate  Issue  of  Reprints;  Author's  Free  and  Additional 
Copies. — As  soon  as  the  final  revise  of  a  Transactions  paper  has  been 
returned,  or  as  soon  as  the  sheet  in  which  the  last  part  of  a  Proceedings 
paper  appears  is  ready  for  press,  a  certain  number  of  separate  copies  or 
reprints,  in  covers  bearing  the  title  of  the  paper  and  the  name  of  the 
author,  are  printed  off  and  placed  on  sale.  The  date  of  such  separate 
publication  will  be  printed  on  each  paper. 

The  author  receives  fifty  of  these  reprints  free,  and  may  have  any 
reasonable  number  of  additional  copies  at  a  fixed  scale  of  prices  which 
will  be  furnished  by  the  printer,  who  will  charge  him  with  the  cost. 
To  prevent  disappointment,  especially  if  the  paper  contains  plates, 
the  author  should,  immediately  after  receiving  his  first  proof,  notify 
to  the  printer  the  number  of  additional  copies  required. 

7.  Index  Sups. — In  order  to  facilitate  the  compilation  of  Subject 
ladices,  and  to  secure  that  due  attention  to  the  important  points  in  a 
paper  shall  be  given  in  General  Catalogues  of  Scientific  Literature  and 
in  Abstracts  by  Periodicals,  every  author  is  requested  to  return  to  tht* 
Secretary  along  with  his  final  proof  a  brief  index  (on  the  model  given 
below),  of  the  pointe  in  it  which  he  considers  new  or  important.  These 
indices  will  be  edited  by  the  Secretary,  and  incorporated  in  Separate 
Index  Slips,  to  be  issued  with  each  part  of  the  Proceedings  and 
Transactions. 


MODEL  INDEX. 


Schafer,  E.  A.— On  the  Existence  within  the  Liver  Cells  of  Channels  which  can 
be  directly  injected  from  the  Blood-vessels.    Proc.  Koy.  Soc.  Ediu.,  vol.      , 
1902,  pp. 
Cells,  Liver, — Intra-cellular  Canaliculi  in. 

E.  A.  Schafer.    Proc.  Roy.  Soc.  Edui.,  vol.        ,  1902,  pp. 
Liver, — Injection  within  Cells  of. 

E.  A.  Schafer.    Proc.  Roy.  Soc.  Edin.,  vol.  1902,  pp. 


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IV 


CONTENTS. 


PACK  ' 


Ocean  Temperatures  and  Solar  Eadiation.      By  Professor 

C.  G.  Knott,  ......       173 

{Issued  separately  April  4,  1904.) 

On  Deep-water  Two-dimensional  Waves  produced  by  any 

given  Initiating  Disturbance.     By  Lobd  Kslvik,        .       185 
{Issued  separaUly  April  4,  1904, ) 


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PROCEEDINGS 


OF  THB 


5- 


ROYAL  SOCIETY  OF  EDINBURGH. 

SESSION  1903-4. 


No.ra.]  VOL.    XXV.  [Pp.  103-272. 


contp:nts. 

Some  Field  Evidence  relating  to  the  Modes  of  Occurrence 
of  Intrusive  Rocks,  with  some  Remarks  upon  the  Origin 
of  Eruptive  Rocks  in  general.  By  J.  G.  Qoodchild, 
of  the  Geological  Survey,  F.G.S.,  F.Z.S.,  Curator  of 
the  Collection  of  Scottish  Mineralogy  in  the  P^din- 
burgh  Museum  of  Science  and  Art.  Communicated 
by  R.  H.  Traquair,  LL.D.,  M.D.,  F.R.S., 
{Issued  separately  May  20,  1904. ) 

Note  on  the  Standard  of  Relative  Viscosity,  and  on  **  Nega- 
tive Viscosity."      By   W.    W.  Tayu)R,   >r.A.,  D.Sc. 
Communicated  by  Professor  Crum  Brown, 
{Iss tied  separately  June  16,  1904.) 

Tlie  Viscosity  of  Aqueous  Solutions  of  ('hloridei*,  Bromides, 
and  Iodides.     By  \V.  W.  Taylor,  M.A.,  D.Sc,  and 
Clerk   Rankbn,   B.Sc.      Communicated   by  Professor 
Crum  Brown,  ...... 

{Issued  separately  June  16,  1904.) 


PAGE 


197 


227 


231 


[Continued  on  page  iv  of  Cover, 


\A\p 


'EDINBURGH: 

PuBUSHBD  BY  ROBERT  GRANT  k  SON,  107  Princes  Stbeet,  and 
WILLIAMS  &  NORGATE,  14  Henrietta  Street,  Covent  Garden,  London. 


Price  Three  Shillin/js. 


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REGULATIONS  REGARDING  THE  PUBLICATION  OF 
PAPERS  IN  THE  PROCEEDINGS  AND  TRANS- 
ACTIONS OF  THE  SOCIETY. 

Thb  Council  beg  to  direct  the  attention  of  authors  of  communications  to 
the  Society  to  the  following  Regulations,  which  have  been  drawn  up  in 
order  to  accelerate  the  publication  of  the  Proceedings  and  TransactioDS, 
and  to  utilise  as  widely  and  as  fairly  as  possible  the  funds  which  the 
Society  devotes  bo  the  publication  of  Scientific  and  Literary  Researches. 

1.  Manuscript  op  Papers. — As  soon  as  any  paper  has  been  passed 
for  publication,  either  in  its  original  or  in  any  altered  form,  and  has  been 
made  ready  for  publication  by  the  author,  it  is  sent  to  the  printer, 
whether  it  has  been  read  or  not. 

The  *  copy '  should  be  written  on  large  sheets  of  paper,  on  one  side 
only,  and  the  pages  should  be  clearly  numbered.  The  MS.  must  be 
easily  legible,  preferably  typewritten,  and  must  be  absolutely  in  its  final 
form  for  printing ;  so  that  corrections  in  proof  shall  be  as  few  as  possible, 
and  shall  not  cause  overrunning  in  the  lines  or  pages  of  the  proof.  All 
tables  of  contents,  references  to  plates  or  illustrations  in  the  text,  etc., 
must  be  in  their  proper  places,  with  the  page  numbers  left  blank ;  and 
spaces  must  be  indicated  for  the  insertion  of  illustrations  that  are  to 
appear  in  the  text. 

2.  Illustrations. — All  illustrations  must  be  drawn  in  a  form  im- 
mediately suitable  for  reproduction;  and  such  illustrations  as  can  be 
reproduced  by  photographic  processes  should,  so  far  as  possible,  be 
preferred.  Drawings  to  be  reproduced  as  line  blocks  should  be  made 
with  Indian  ink  (deadened  with  yellow  if  of  bluish  tone),  preferably  on 
fine  white  bristol  board,  free  from  folds  or  creases ;  smooth,  clean  lines 
or  sharp  dots,  but  no  washes  or  colours  should  be  used.  If  the  drawings 
are  done  on  a  large  scale,  to  be  afterwards  reduced  by  photography,  any 
lettering  or  other  legend  must  be  on  a  corresponding  scale. 

If  an  author  finds  it  inconvenient  to  furnish  such  drawings,  the  Society 
will  have  the  figures  re-drawn  at  his  expense ;  but  this  will  cause  delay. 

When  the  ilhistrations  are  to  form  plates,  a  scheme  for  the  arrange- 
ment of  the  figures  (in  quarto  plates  for  the  Transactions,  in  octavo  for 
the  Proceedings)  must  be  given,  and  numbering  and  lettering  indicated. 

3.  Proofs. — In  general,  a  first  proof  and  a  revise  of  each  paper  will 
be  sent  to  the  author,  whose  address  should  be  indicated  on  the  MS. 
If  further  proofs  are  required,  owing  to  corrections  or  alterations  for 
which  the  printer  is  not  responsible,  the  expense  of  such  proofs  and 
corrections  will  be  charged  against  the  author. 

All  proofs  must,  if  possible,  be  returned  within  one  week,  addressed  to 
TJie  Secretary^  Royal  Society^  Mound,  JSdinbargh,  and  Tiot  to  the  printer. 

[Continued  on  page  iii  of  Cover, 


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I908-4.]      Lord  Kelvin  on  Two-dimensional  Waves. 
fc-1;  j,-4;<  =  6;    -{=  ^?  sin  (^ +  «)«?. 


193 


Col.L 

Col.  2. 

CoLS. 

1     Col.  4. 

1 

It 

•5490 

1      Col.  5. 

1 

Col.  6. 

1        Col.  7. 

X. 

P 

II 

s 

€P^"- 

i|ir 

4-0 

•6965 

•7882 

•4866 

•2298 

•07771 

4-41 

... 

0 

... 

0 

4-6 

•6588 

•7798 

•6189 

-  ^0944 

•3088 

-•01917 

6  0 

•6262 

•7788 

•4848 

-  6684 

•8823 

-  1386 

5-6 

,    •5981 

•76-78 

•4592 

-  -8457 

'4498 

-•2273 

60 

1    -5783 

•7629 

•4875 

-  -9781 

•6122 

-  -2872 

6-5 

i    -5518 

•7587 

•4185 

-  •9956 

•5641 

-  ^3096 

7-0 

•5318 

-7556 

•4018 

-  -9374 

-6066 

-  ^3024 

7-5 

•5150 

•7522 

•3868 

-•8383 

•6462 

-  2778 

8  0 

•4980 

-7494 

•8734 

-  •7053 

•6808 

-  -2892 

9-0 

•4699 

•7461 

•8601 

-  ^4289 

•7872 

-  -1486 

10 

1    -4461 

•7416 

•3308 

-  -1679 

•6846 

-  -04768 

10-62 

0 

0 

11 

,    -4255 

•7885 

•3U2 

•05698 

•81*47 

•01975 

12 

1    -4076 

•7369 

•2999 

•2428 

•8416 

•08876 

13 

•8916 

•7889 

-2874 

•8940 

•8644 

•1834 

14 

•8775 

•7318 

•2762 

•5176 

•8808 

•1721 

15 

•3648 

•7302 

•2663 

•6168 

•8954 

•2018 

16 

•3683 

•7286 

•2574 

•6953 

•9082 

•2281 

18 

•3331 

•7266 

•2419 

•8098 

•9260 

•2498 

20 

•8160 

•7256 

•2290 

•8881 

•9396 

•2622 

22 

•3014 

•7230 

•2179 

•9818 

•9497 

•2666 

24 

•2885 

•7216 

•2082 

•9627 

-9679 

•2661 

26 

•2772 

•7206 

•1997 

•9816 

•9638 

•2622 

28 

•2672 

•7193 

•1923 

•9916 

•9685 

•2566 

80 

•2681 

•7187 

•1856 

•9979 

•9727 

•2505 

82 

•2500 

•7181 

•1795 

•9999 

•9759 

•2489 

84 

•2425 

7173 

•1740 

•9993 

•9786 

•2371 

88 

•2294 

•7163 

•1648 

•9938 

•9828 

•2240 

42 

•2182 

•7155 

•1661 

•9840 

•9847 

•2188 

46 

•2084 

•7147 

•1490 

•9734 

•9883 

•2005 

50 

•2000 

•7141 

•1429 

•9623 

•9902 

•1905 

55 

•1906 

•7136 

•1360 

•9486     , 

•9917 

•1794 

60 

•1826 

•7129 

•1802 

•9361 

•9931 

•1697 

70 

•1690 

•7120 

•1208 

•9125 

•9949 

•1535 

80 

•1581 

•7114 

•1125 

•8931 

•9961 

•1407 

100 

•1415 

•7108 

•1005 

•8626 

•9977 

•1217 

00 

0 

•7071 

0 

1 

•7071 

roooo 

0 

§  8.  Look  at  the  values  shown  in  the  previous  table  for  the 
three  factors  which  constitute  £; — we  see  that  the  first  factor 
(col.  2)  decreases  slowly  from  a?«0  to  a-^oo  ;  the  second  factor 
(col.  5)  alternates  between  + 1  and  - 1  with  increasing  distances 
(semi- wave-lengths)  from  zero  to  zero  as  x  increases.     The  third 

PBGC.  ROY.  SOC.  EDIN. — VOL.  XXV.  13 


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1 94  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh,  [i 


factor  (col.  6)  increases  gradually  from  c  "**/**  at  a;  =  0,  to  1  at 
a;  =  00  .  At  a;  =  507i,  the  third  factor  is  '99,  which  is  so  nearly 
unity  that  the  diminution  of  amplitude  is,  for  all  greater  values  of 
ar,  practically  given  by  the  first  factor  alone,  Avhich  diminishes 
from  '2  at  or  =  50/i,  to  0  at  ar  =  oo . 

§  9.  The  diagrams  hitherto  given,  figs.  1,  2,  3,  may  be  called 
space-curves,  as  on  each  of  them  abscissas  represent  distance  from 
the  centre  of  the  disturbance.  Fig.  4  is  a  time-curve  (abscissas 
representing  time)  for  x  =  27i.  It  represents  a  very  gradual  rise, 
from  <  =  0  to  ^=  *G,  followed  by  a  fall  to  a  minimum  at  <  =  2 "8,  and 
a  succession  of  alternations,  with  smaller  and  smaller  maximum 
elevations  and  depressions,  and  shorter  and  shorter  times  from 
zero  to  zero,  on  to  /  =  oo .  The  same  words  with  altered  figures 
describe  the  changes  of  water  level  at  any  fixed  position  farther 
from  the  centre  of  disturbance  than  a;  =  2.  The  following  table 
shows,  for  the  case  a:=100/i,  all  the  times  of  zero  less  than  717/, 
and  the  elevations  and  depressions  at  the  intermediate  times  when 
the  second  factor  (col.  5  of  §  7)  has  its  maximum  and  minimum 
values  (±1).  These  elevations  and  depressions  are  very  approxi- 
mately the  greatest  in  the  intervals  between  the  zeros,  because  the 
third  factor  (col.  6,  §  7)  varies  but  slowly,  as  shown  in  the  first 
column  of  the  present  table. 

7i=l;  a;=100;  p=  100-005.7i;  ^  =  <a»-^^^^J  =  45'  18'. 


Times  of  Zero 

Times  of  Zero 

-f2 

and  of 

Approximate 
Maximum 

-ta 

and  of 

Approximate 
Maximum 

€> 

Approximate 
Maximum 

€P« 

Approximate 
Maximum 

Elevations  and 

ElevaUous  and 

Elevation  and 

Depressions. 

Elevation  and 

Depressions. 

•9922 

Depression. 

•7718 

Depression. 
50^90 

+  -1091 

8^383 

+  -1403 

... 

15-33 

0 

62-42 

0 

•9616 

19-80 

-  -1360 

-7478 

68-90 

-  -1058       1 

... 

23-43 

0 

55-34 

0 

•9817 

26-67 

+  -1317 

-7247 

6674 

+  1025       1 

29-38 

0 

58-10 

0 

•9031 

81-94 

-  -1277 

•7023 

59-45 

-  0998 

... 

34-31 

0 

... 

60-75 

0 

•8750 

86-54 

+  •1237 

•6806 

62-03 

+  0962 

... 

S8-62 

0 

63-29 

0 

•8480 

40-61 

-•1199 

-6696 

64-51 

-  -0988 

... 

42-60 

0 

65-72 

0 

•8219 

44-31 

+  •1162 

•6392 

66-90 

+  -0904 

... 

46  04 

0 

68-07 

0 

•7964 

47-72 

-•1167 

•6195 

69-21 

-  -0876 

... 

49-34 

0 

70-34 

0 

t 

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1908-4.J      Lord  Kelvin  on  Two-dimeneional  Waves. 


195 


CO  >Q 


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1 96  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  JSdinbtirgh.  [sicss. 

§  10.  Our  assumption  A « 1  for  the  free  surface  involves  no 
restriction  of  our  solution  to  a  particular  case  of  the  general 
formula  (7).  Our  assumption  g*^i  merely  means  that  our  unit 
of  abscissas  is  half  the  space  fallen  through  in  our  unit  of  time. 
The  fundamental  formulas  of  §  3  may  be  geometrically  explained 
by,  as  in  §  2,  taking  0,  our  origin  of  co-ordinates,  at  a  height  k 
above  the  water  level,  and  defining  p  as  the  distance  of  any 
particle  of  the  fluid  from  it.  When,  as  in  §§  6-9,  we  are  only 
concerned  with  particles  in  the  free  surface  (that  is  to  say  when 
z  =  h)f  we  see  that  if  ar  is  a  large  multiple  of  2,  /»%«.  See  for 
example  the  heading  of  the  table  of  §  9.  And  if  we  are  concerned 
with  particles  below  the  surface,  we  still  have  p=x,  if  2  is  a 
large  multiple  of  z.  Thus  we  have  the  following  approximation 
for  (7)  of  §  3  :— 

Suppose  now  d<l>/dt  to  represent  £  (instead  of  <^,  as  in  g  6-9) ; 
we  have 

which  is  easily  found  from  (13)  without  farther  restrictive 
suppositions.  But  if  we  suppose  that  z  is  negligibly  small  in  com- 
parison with  z ;  and  farther  that 

S-^ 05). 

we  find  by  (14) 

This,  except  the -sign  -  instead  of  -H,  is  Cauchy's  solution;*  of 
which  he  says  that  when  the  time  has  advanced  so  much  as  to 
violate  a  condition  equivalent  to  (16),  "le  mouvement  change 
"  avec  la  m^thode  d'approximation."  The  remainder  of  his  Note 
XVI.  (about  100  pages)  is  chiefly  devoted  to  very  elaborate  efforts 
to  obtain  definite  results  for  the  larger  values  of  t.  This  object 
is  thoroughly  attained  by  the  exponential  factor  in  (8)  of  §3 
above,  without  the  crippling  restriction  z/x'-O  which  vitiates  (16) 
for  small  values  of  a:. 

•  CEuvreSf  vol.  i.  note  xv'i.  p.  193. 

{Isstied  separately  April  4,  1904.) 


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1908-4.]        Mr  J.  G.  (xoodchild  on  Intrusive  Bocks.  197 


Some  Field  Bvidenoe  Belating  to  the  Modes  of  Oocur- 
rence  of  Intrusive  Books,  with  some  Bemarks  upon 
the  Origin  of  Eruptive  Books  in  General  By  J.  Q. 
Qoodohild,  of  the  Geological  Survey,  F.G.S.,  F.Z.S., 
Curator  of  the  Collection  of  Scottish  Mineralogy  in  the 
Edinburgh  Museum  of  Science  and  Art.  Communicated  by 
R.  H.  Traquair,  LL.D.,  M.D.,  F.R.S. 

(Read  Dec.  6,  1P03  ;  MS.  reooived  Jan.  6,  1904.) 

SYNOPSIS. 

1.  Introduction,  pp.  197-199.  History  of  preyious  opinion,  pp.  199-202. 
Eridenoe  bearing  upon  the  question  whether  intrusive  rooks  displace  or 
replace  the  rocks  they  invade,  pp.  202-218.  Basic  sills  in  sandstones, 
pp.  202-204  ;  in  shales,  pp.  205-207 ;  in  limestones,  p.  208;  in  coal  seams, 
pp.  208-210.  Basic  dykes  in  the  same  connection,  pp.  211-212.  Acid 
intrusions,  pp.  212-218.  Anomalies  in  the  mode  of  occurrence  of  dykes 
discussed,  pp.  218-217.  Relation  between  dykes  and  sills,  p.  217. 
Evidence  cited  from  other  sources,  pp.  217-218.  Summary  of  the 
author's  conclusions,  pp.  218-226. 

It  is  commonly  believed  by  geologists,  as  well  as  by  coal  miners, 
that  the  inner  faces  of  the  rocks  which  enclose  intrusive  masses 
were  at  one  time  in  contact,  and  that  each  of  these  surfaces  is  the 
counterpart  in  form  to  the  other,  from  which  it  has  been  severed 
by  the  forces  to  which  the  injection  of  the  intrusive  mass  was  due. 
In  the  case  of  a  sill,  for  example,  this  belief  implies  that  the  rock 
floor  below  the  sill  and  the  roof  above  it  were  in  imbroken 
contact  at  some  time  before  the  sill  was  intruded,  and  that  the 
floor  and  the  roof  have  been  forced  apart  to  a  distance  equal  to 
the  thickness  of  the  intrusive  mass.  In  like  manner,  so  it  is 
believed,  the  waUs  right  and  left  of  a  dyke  are  supposed  to  have 
been  thrust  apart  from  their  original  position.  In  other  words,  it 
is  evidently  the  common  belief  that  these  intrusive  rocks, 
whatever  their  volume  may  be,  have  added  that  volume  to  the 
rocks  they  invade.  To  put  this  statement  into  yet  another  form, 
it  is  evidently  believed  that  two  seams  of  coal,  or  beds  of  black- 
band,  or  of  oil  shale,  which  occur  under  normal  conditions  at  ten 


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198  Proceedhigs  ofRoyai  Society  of  Edinburgh,  [t 

fathoms  apart,  are  thrust  to  twenty  fathoms  apart  if  there  happens 
to  he  ten  fathoms  of  intrusive  rock  between  them.  A  reference 
to  ahnost  any  treatise  on  geology  in  which  this  relationship 
between  intrusive  masses  and  the  "country  rock"  is  discussed 
will  at  once  prove  that  the  view  referred  to  has  evidently  been 
the  one  that  the  author  had  in  mind. 

Amongst  colliery  people,  who  have  to  deal  with  these  questions 
in  a  practical  way,  there  has  long  been  some  difference  of  opinion 
upon  this  point;  some  believing  that  trap  rocks  cut  out  the 
measures.  But  as  they  are  "only  practical  men,"  their  opinion 
upon  a  geological  matter  is  apt  to  be  ignored.  Furthermore,  as 
will  be  evident  from  the  sequel,  many  field  geologists  are  now  of 
opinion  that  intrusive  masses  usually  replace  the  rocks  they 
invade. 

It  is  obviously  a  matter  of  considerable  commercial  import- 
ance to  test  by  field  evidence  whether  the  current  view  referred 
to  above  is  or  is  not  the  correct  one.  This  is  especially  the  case  in 
connection  with  the  Scottish  coal-iields,  which  are  in  many  cases 
"much  troubled  with  whin,"  as  the  increasing  demand  for  coal 
is  leading  to  the  prospecting  of  parts  of  coal-fields  which  have 
hitherto  been  left  untouched,  because  the  areas  referred  to  have 
been  known  to  be  afi'ected  by  intrusive  masses.  A  little  con- 
sideration will  suffice  to  show  that  the  question  is  one  of  at  least 
equal  interest  to  geologists,  as  it  is  one  of  wide- reaching  import- 
ance, and  as,  moreover,  it  raises  many  questions  in  both  chemistry 
and  physics  which  are  much  more  easily  asked  than  answered. 
One  may  indeed  go  farther  than  even  that,  for  if  it  can  be  shown 
that  the  current  view  is  not  in  accordance  with  the  facts,  it  is 
obvious  that  our  views  on  the  origin  of  eruptive  rocks  in  general 
will  have  to  be  reconsidered,  and  we  may  even  have  to  modify  our 
opinions  on  some  matters  relating  to  the  succession  of  events 
which  took  place  in  the  earlier  geological,  or  later  astronomical, 
periods  of  the  Earth's  history. 

Fully  realising,  therefore,  the  importance  of  the  issues  about 
to  be  raised,  I  shall  endeavour,  in  the  first  part  of  this  paper,  to 
keep  rigidly  to  a  statement  of  the  facts  which  bear  upon  this 
question,  and  then,  after  summarising  the  evidence,  I  shall  go  on 
to  point  out  the  conclusions  to  which  the  study  of  these  facts 


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1908-4.]        Mr  J.  G.  Goodchild  on  Intrusive  Bocks.  199 

appears  to  lead.  Id  the  latter  part  of  the  paper,  while  passing 
additional  facts  in  review,  I  shall  venture  to  suhmit  for  the 
consideration  of  field  geologists  *  an  hypothesis  which  appears  to 
me  to  be  in  full  harmony  with  the  facts. 

The  question  whether  intrusive  rocks  displace  or  replace  the 
rocks  they  invade  has  often  been  raised  before.  A  brief  notice  of 
two  or  three  of  the  more  important  papers  dealing  with  the 
subject  cannot  be  out  of  place,  and  accordingly  they  are  given 
here. 

In  1852  or  1853  the  late  Prof.  J.  Beete  Jukes  wrote  in  the 
Cfeologiccd  Survey  Memoir^  "On  the  Greology  of  the  South 
Staffordshire  Coal-field,"  pp.  246-7,  as  follows :  "  I  was  assured 
also  by  almost  every  one  engaged  in  the  works  of  this  neighbour- 
hood that,  notwithstanding  the  variation  in  thickness  of  'The 
Green  Bock'  [a  basic  sill],  there  was  no  change  in  the  total 
thickness  of  the  measures;  that,  for  instance,  the  thickness 
between  the  Xew  Mine  Coal  and  the  Blue  Flats  Ironstone 
remained  the  same,  whatever  might  be  the  variation  in  the 
thickness  of  *The  Green  Rock.'  In  other  words,  it  was  afl&rmed 
almost  universally  that  *The  Green  Rock*  not  only  intruded 
between  the  measures,  but  obliterated  [the  italics  are  the  author's] 
a  mass  of  beds  equal  to  its  own  thickness."  Jukes  then  goes  on 
to  express  a  doubt  about  the  miner's  conclusions ;  nevertheless,  on 
the  next  page  (247)  he  adds:  "At  Union  Colliery,  north  of 
[Walsall],  the  Bottom  Coal  is  cut  out  entirely  by  *  green  rock.' " 
I  do  not  give  the  evidence  cited  by  Jukes  in  support  of  his  own 
view,  as  the  fact  that  he  was  informed  of  evidence  of  the  trap 
cutting  out  the  coal  is  all  that  need  be  referred  to  here  now. 

There  may  have  been  other  evidence  published  before  that,  or 
since,  of  which  I  have  at  present  no  information.  But,  in  1867, 
Mr  Hughes  (now  the  Woodwardian  Professor  of  Geology  at 
Cambridge,  wrote  as  follows  in  a  review  of  Nicholson's  "Essay 
on  the  Geology  of  Cumberland  and  Westmorland,"  Geol.  Mag,, 
dec.  L,  vol.  v.,  pp.  466-7  (1868)  :— 

"  One  point  seems  often  to  come  out  from  a  careful  examination 
of  a  granite  mass.     The  granite  seems  to  replace  a  certain  portion 

*  The  questions  raised  are  of  a  petrographical  as  distingtiished  from  lith(h 
logical  character. 


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200  Proceedings  of  Boyal  Society  of  Edinburgh,  [i 

of  the  sedimentary  strata,  and  not  to  displace  them,  leaving  them 
pushed  out  on  all  sides.  If  we  suppose  the  intruded  rock  to  eat 
its  way  into  the  sedimentary  strata,  assimilating  portions  of  it, 
we  allow  a  good  deal  of  what  is  asked  hy  those  who  hold  the 
metamorphic  origin  of  granite  rocks,  i.e.,  the  possihility  of  changing 
a  sedimentary  into  a  granitoid  rock.  The  advocates  of  that  theory 
may  take  their  stand  upon  the  assimilated  portion,  and  ask  is  it 
the  heat  of  the  intruded  mass,  or  the  new  conditions  under  which 
the  minerals  have  heen  hrought  into  contact  with  the  sedimentary 
rocks,  which  has  produced  the  change,  and  then  point  out  that 
both  the  one  and  the  other  may  be  obtained  by  a  sufficient 
depression  of  the  sedimentary  rocks"  [the  above  italics  are  the 
author's]. 

In  a  later  reference,  made  in  the  Geological  Survey  Memoir 
on  98  S.E.,  pp.  41-42,  the  same  author  repeats  the  statement 
chiefly  with  reference,  on  this  occasion,  to  the  dykes  of  minette, 
porphyrite,  and  quartz  felsite  which  occur  in  the  region  described. 
He  adds  the  remark :  "  It  may  be  worth  consideration  whether  in 
some  cases  it  might  not  be  possible  that  the  action  of  gases  or 
of  hot  water  holding  minerals  in  solution,  communicating  along 
lines  of  fissure  with  the  joints,  might  produce  the  phenomena 
observed." 

As  I  happened  to  be  working  with  the  author  at  the  time  when 
both  of  these  remarks  were  penned,  and  had  abundant  opportunities, 
then  and  on  later  occasions,  of  observing  the  facts  upon  which 
his  conclusions  were  based,  I  can  confirm  them  in  every  particular. 
Attention  may  be  directed  to  the  fact  that  no  mention  was  made 
of  any  lithological  passage  from  that  of  the  dyke  to  the  country 
rock.  Nevertheless,  in  the  discussions  which  followed  the 
publication  of  the  above  passages,  only  side  issues  were  raised, 
mainly  on  the  ground  that  no  evidence  of  a  lithological  passage 
could  be  made  out;  and  the  statements  of  fact,  thus  apparently 
discredited,  were  allowed  to  drop  out  of  sight. 

In  1879  Mr  Clough  of  the  Geological  Survey  took  up  the 
matter  again,  in  connection  with  the  Whin  Sill  of  Teesdale,  and 
read  a  paper  before  the  Geological  Society  of  London,  in  which 
similar  views  were  advanced,  and  supported  by  an  excellent  array 
of  facts  and  arguments.     Again  a  side  issue  was  raised,  and  the 


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1903-4.]        Mr  J.  G.  Groodchild  on  Inti-usive  Bocks.         •  201 

paper  was  not  allowed  to  appear  in  the  Quarterly  Journal.  But 
in  the  Geological  Magazine^  decade  ii.,  vol.  xii.,  pp.  434-447 
(October  1880),  the  substance  of  that  communication  appeared 
under  the  title  of  "  The  Whin  SiU  of  Teesdale  as  an  Assimilator 
of  the  Surrounding  Beds.''  Besides  the  materials  collected  in  the 
field  by  himself,  Mr  Clough  was  able  to  get  corroborative  evidence 
in  support  of  his  views  from  Dr  James  Geikie,  Dr  Peach,  myself, 
and  other  of  his  then  colleagues.  Mr  Clough  was  quite  as  fully 
aware  of  the  fact  as  any  of  his  predecessors  in  the  field  that 
though  the  dolerite  in  question  replaces  beds  of  very  diverse 
chemical  composition,  its  own  mineral  constitution  remained 
uniform,  and  he  was  equally  well  aware  that  there  is  no  trace  of 
any  lithological  passage  from  the  country  rock  to  the  intruder,  or 
vice  versa.  To  meet  this  very  formidable  chemical  difficulty, 
which  still  looms  very  large  indeed  in  the  eyes  of  cabinet  geologists, 
he  wrote  (p.  442),  referring  to  objections  likely  to  be  raised  on 
these  grounds:  "But  any  force  which  this  objection  possesses 
depends  upon  the  assumption,  that  if  sedimentary  beds  were  taken 
up  by  the  Whin,  they  would  remain  in  it  close  at  hand  in  their 
original  situation,  whereas  there  may  have  been  a  very  general 
circulation,  both  on  a  large  scale  and  molecule  by  molecule, 
reducing  all  the  parts  of  the  mixture  to  a  general  uniformity  of 
composition.  The  very  possibility  of  forming  alloys  and  of 
modifying  the  properties  of  metals  by  adding  to  them  small 
portions  of  other  substances  depends  upon  this  principle  of 
circulation  or  diffusion,  so  that  it  cannot  be  said  that  we  are 
without  warrant  for  it." 

I  may  add  that  the  paper  has  always  appeared  to  me  to  be 
a  very  valuable  one,  and  that  I  can  adduce  abundant  corroborative 
evidence  in  support  of  the  author's  statements  of  fact,  partly  from 
a  knowledge  of  the  areas  adjacent  to  Teesdale,  where  similar 
phenomena  are  seen,  and  partly  from  an  examination  of  the  part 
of  Teesdale  referred  to,  after  the  Geological  Survey  map  of  the 
district  was  published. 

Again,  in  Mr  Clough's  case,  were  the  facts  ignored  or  explained 
away,  apparently  on  no  other  ground  than  that  it  appeared  very 
unlikely  that  an  extensive  sheet  of  dolerite  could,  by  any  means, 
eat  up  large  volumes  of  sandstone  without  showing  a  higher  silica 


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202'        ProceediTigs  of  Boyal  Society  of  Fdiriburgh.  [i 

percentage  than  usual,  or  that  it  could  assimilate  thick  beds  of 
limestone  without  the  development  of  any  additional  lime  silicates, 
or  that  it  could  eat  up  shales  without  any  perceptible  increase  in 
alumina-silicates  being  evident  in  any  part  of  the  invading  rock. 

It  must  occur  to  any  reasoning  person,  however,  that  the 
FACTS,  at  least,  either  do  exist  as  stated,  or  they  do  not.  If  they 
do,  then  it  is  very  illogical  to  close  our  eyes  to  them.  It  would  be 
much  better  to  face  those  facts  at  once,  and  either  to  accept  them 
as  such  without  attempting  to  explain  how  they  came  about,  or 
else  to  re-examine  the  evidence  and  endeavour  to  frame  some 
hypothesis  which  would  harmonise  what  is  known  about  them ; 
or,  at  least,  to  think  out  some  explanation  which  would  serve  for 
the  time  being  as  a  working  hypothesis  until  a  better  on^  could 
be  suggested. 

Bearing  these  considerations  in  mind,  I  have  collected  much 
additional  evidence  which  bears  upon  this  controverted  question. 
Most  of  the  facts  have  been  obtained  in  the  Lowlands  of  Scotland, 
and  I  have  aimed,  as  much  as  possible,  at  citing  instances  which 
are  either  to  be  seen  without  difficulty  in  such  easily-visited 
localities  as  the  Queen's  Park,  or  else  at  other  places  withia  a 
short  distance  of  Edinburgh.  The  behaviour  of  basic  intrusive 
rocks  will  be  considered  first,  taking  sills  in  the  first  place  and 
dykes  next. 

In  view  of  the  fact  that  many  geologists  think  that  mechanical 
disturbance  always  accompanies  the  intrusion  of  eruptive  masses,. 
I  have  thought  it  well  to  give  first  an  outline  drawing  (fig.  1) 
taken  from  a  photograph  by  Mr  A.  G.  Stenhouse,  F.G.S.^ 
of  the  well-known  example  in  the  quarry  at  the  south  end  of 
the  foot  of  Salisbury  Crags,  which  is  the  example  illustrated  in 
Hay  Cunningham's  Fig.  3,  Plate  III.,  Mem.  Wem.  Soc,,  vol,  vii. 
In  this  case  a  wedge  of  dolerite  has  been,  so  to  speak,  arrested 
while  in  the  act  of  forcing  off  a  fragment  of  one  of  the  beds  of 
Cornstone  there.  The  section  to  the  left  of  the  wedge  follows 
the  method  of  attack  usual  in  such  cases.  Fig.  2,  traced  from  a 
photograph  taken  at  Hound  Point,  Dalmeny,  by  the  weU-known 
vulcanologist  Dr  Tempest  Anderson,  shows  a  similar  wedging  off 
of  the  country  rock  by  the  intrusive  mass,  which  in  this  case  is 
also  a  dolerite.     It  may  be  remarked  that  within  six  feet  of  this 


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190  '-4*.]         Mr  J.  G.  Goodchild  on  Intinmve  Bocks,  203 

wedge  the  dolerite  is  seen,  as  in  the  last  case  cited,  to  have  eaten 
its  way  into  the  rock,  across  joints  and  faults  as  well,  without  any 
signs  of  disruption. 

Fig.  3  shows  the  top  of  the  dolerite  in  the  old  quarry  at  the 
north  end  of  Salisbury  Crags.  The  dolerite  in  this  case  has  made 
its  way  upwards  into  the  Cornstones  there  in  a  very  irregular 
manner,  and  has  consequently  left  a  downward  extension  or  tongue 
of  sandstone  (now  altered  into  a  quartzite)  with  the  intrusive  rocks 
on  either  side  of  it.  The  figure,  traced  from  a  photograph  by  Mr 
Fingland,  of  the  Glasgow  University,  shows  irregular  tongues  of 
the  dolerite  in  the  sandstone,  which  have  evidently  made  their 
way  there  without  causing  the  least  mechanical  disturbance.  Two 
or  three  cases  are  seen  in  this  example  in  which  the  dolerite  has 
tunnelled  into  the  sandstone,  and  has  left  an  unbroken  ring  of  the 
sandstone  around.  At  the  bottom  right-hand  side  are  included 
fragments  *  of  the  country  rock  still  remaining  undissolved  within 
the  dolerite.  The  section  at  the  foot  of  Salisbury  Crags  described 
by  Hay  Cunningham  {op.  ciL\  and  figured  on  Plate  TV.  of  his 
Greology  of  the  LothianSy  is  one  of  very  considerable  interest  in  the 
present  connection.  One  aspect  of  it  is  represented  on  fig.  4, 
traced  from  a  photograph  by  Mr  Stenhouse.  It  shows  several 
tongues  of  dolerite  ending  oflf  against  unbroken  country  rock 
(Cornstones).  With  these  finger-like  processes  there  are  several 
protrusions  of  dolerite  completely  surrounded  by  the  unbroken 
sandstone.  One  example  of  this  has  been  detached,  and  is  now 
exhibited  in  the  Gallery  of  Scottish  Greology  and  Mineralogy  in 
the  Edinburgh  Museum  of  Science  and  Art,  along  with  other 
examples  to  be  referred  to  in  detail  presently.  On  the  south  side 
of  the  Queen's  Park  alone  nineteen  cases  of  dolerite,  either  ending 
off  against  unbroken  rock,  or  else  completely  surrounded  by  it, 
have  already  been  noted,  and  there  are  probably  many  others 
there,  as  well  as  more  in  other  parts  of  the  Park.  In  Hay 
Cunningham's  treatise  (pp.  cit,  PI.  III.  fig.  1)  is  an  example  of 
the  same  kind  occurring  at  the  base  of  the  intrusive  basalt  of  St 
Leonard's  Hill.  Again,  there  are  masses  of  sandstone  caught  up 
in  the  curious  dyke-like  mass  of  dolerite  which  rises  into  the  rock  of 
Salisbury  Crags  from  below  the  Radical  Road,  near  its  western- 
*  Why  should  these  be  called  Xenoliths  ? 


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204  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh.  [s 


'-uUIMlLUjIi!/!, 


AA/«a4rcn.  pjjukdturtx  jt  ^oimiO.  %%IL 


^^^TTTi/h 


i^^^r^-^ 


1/ 


r<s 


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1903-4.]        Mr  J.  G.  Goodchild  on  Intrusive  Bocks.  205 

most  extremity,  and  which  has  so  often  been  likened  to  the  stem 
of  the  mushroom  of  which  the  Crag  forms  the  cap.  In  this 
sandstone  there  are  several  examples  of  the  same  nature.  In 
connection  with  the  dolerite  sills  which  give  rise  to  the  beautiful 
scenery  around  Hawk  Crag,  Aberdour,  there  are  many  remarkable 
and  most  instructive  examples  of  the  same  kind.  Some  are  to  be 
seen  at  the  foot  of  the  crag  N.N.E.  of  the  outer  end  of  the  stone 
pier;  but  the  best  occur  just  above  high-water  mark  on  either 
side  of  the  base  of  the  pier.  The  sedimentary  rocks  consist  of 
carbonaceous  shales  and  sandstones  belonging  to  some  part 
of  the  Oil  Shale  subdivision  of  the  Lower  Carboniferous  Bocks. 
The  rocks  on  the  north  side  of  the  pier  base  are  chiefly  sandstones. 
The  dolerite  has  tunnelled  its  way  into  these  rocks  in  several 
places,  so  that  it  now  occurs  in  apparently  isolated  masses  entirely 
enclosed  within  sandstone.  These  arc  shown  in  fig.  5,  which 
is  from  a  photograph  taken  by  Mr  Steiihouse.  One  of  these  was 
got  out,  and  is  now  exhibited  in  the  Collection  above  referred  to. 
At  the  roadside  facing  the  south  edge  of  the  pier  occurs  a  bank 
of  shale  which  is  traversed  by  at  least  nine  small  sheets  and 
wedges  of  dolerite.  In  a  generalised  way  this  also  was  figured  by 
Hay  Cunningham  (op,  cit,  PL  XIV.,  and  here,  drawn  from  a 
photograph,  in  fig.  7).  It  is  an  excellent  example  of  the  manner 
in  which  bands  of  dolerite  interdigitate  amongst  the  strata  near 
where  rapid  variations  in  the  thickness  of  the  intruder  are  taking 
place,  or  near  where  it  is  dying  out.  Amongst  these  tongues  or  fingers 
are  several  which  end  off  abruptly  against  unbroken  shale.  One 
of  these,  which  is  in  the  Edinburgh  Museum,  is  shown  in  fig.  6  ; 
wliile  the  irregular  junction  of  the  larger  mass  in  the  east  side  of 
the  harbour  with  the  sandstone  beneath,  taken  from  one  of  Mr 
Stenhouse's  photographs,  is  shown  in  fig.  8.  Fine  examples  of 
this  lateral  passage  by  interdigitation  of  an  intrusive  mass  into 
the  country  rock  may  be  observed  also  at  the  west  face  of  The 
Dasses,  in  the  Queen's  Park,  about  midway  between  The  Washing 
Green  and  The  Piper's  Boad.  It  is  quite  a  common  occurrence 
for  sheets  of  dolerite  (and  also  sills  of  other  kinds)  to  end  ofi*  by 
interdigitation  in  this  way.  A  good  example  is  that  presented  by 
the  dolerite  sill  which  forms  Fair  Head,  on  the  coast  of  Antrim. 
In  Geikie's  Aricient  Volcanoes^  vol.  ii.,  p.  304,  fig.  317,  is  given  a 


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206  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Ediriburgh.  [i 

section  at  Farragandoo  Cliff,  at  the  west  end  of  Fair  Head,  which 
shows  this  indigitation  of  dolerite  with  the  country  rock  in  a 
manner  which  is  thoroughly  typical  of  the  behaviour  of  sills  in 
that  respect.  It  will  be  observed  that  there  is  little  evidence,  if 
any,  of  mechanical  disturbance.  On  the  contrary  the  whole  mass 
of  field  evidence  seems  to  point  to  the  intrusive  rock  having  taken 
the  place  of  the  shale,  without  causing  any  uplift  of  the  rock 
surfaces  which  are  supposed  by  some  writers  to  have  been  thus 
laccolitised.  The  relationship  of  the  one  rock  to  the  other  is 
certainly  not  of  the  kiml  that  might  be  illustrated  by  thrusting 
one's  fingers  between  the  leaves  of  an  otherwise  closed  book  lying 
upon  its  side.  The  separation  of  the  leaves  forming  the  upper 
half  of  the  book  from  these  forming  the  other  would  in  such  a 
■case  bear  an  exact  proportion  to  the  size  of  the  fingei^s  thrust  in  ; 
and  there  must  in  all  such  cases  be  a  certain  amount  of  curvature 
of  the  upper  part,  which  occasions  some  lateral  movement  of  the 
■ends  of  the  separated  parts  relative  to  their  position  before  the 
"  intrusion."  This  shortening,  supposing  the  uplift  to  take  place  on 
one  side  only,  would  be  proportionate  at  either  end  of  the  uplifted 
part  to  half  the  difference  between  the  length  of  the  arc  formed  by 
the  lifted  portion  and  half  the  length  of  the  portion  undisturbed. 
In  a  rock  thus  acted  upon  the  adjustment  to  the  changed  lateral 
dimensions  must  occasion  some  mechanical  disturbance.  Traces  of 
such  I  have  never  met  with.  In  actual  examples  the  case  is  rather  of 
that  kind  which  might  happen  if  part  of  the  leaves,  corresponding 
in  shape  and  in  volume  to  those  of  the  fiugers  thrust  in,  had  been 
<jut  out.  In  the  former  case,  supposing  we  are  dealing  with  a 
<jlosed  book  lying  on  its  side,  the  outer  cover  would  be  lifted ;  if 
the  case  were  of  the  latter  kind,  the  cover  might  remain  quite 
undisturbed  while  the  fingers  were  pushed  in.  I  shall  adduce  some 
further  evidence  in  support  of  the  view  that  the  case  last 
illustrated  is  the  usual  one;  though  there  may  well  be  some 
occasional  exceptions  to  it.  Fig.  9,  on  page  207,  shows  a  well- 
known  case  of  intrusion  at  Dodhead  Quarry,  near  Burntisland  Golf 
Course.  Fig.  10,  from  the  same  quarry,  is  traced  from  a  photograph 
taken  by  Professor  Reynolds  of  Bristol,  in  which  yet  another 
example  occurs  of  an  intrusive  rock  eating  its  way  into  shales,  which 
remain  undisturbed  above  and  below.     Its  position  is  shown  by  a  B 


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im-i,]         Mr  J.  G.  Goodchild  an  Iivtrimve  S^ycks,  207 

on  fig.  9.     In  this,  as  in  the  other  cases  cited,  it  is  perfectly  evident 
that  the  intrusive  mass  has  not  added  its  volume  to  that  of  the 


Fio.  9.— Eastern  face  of  Dodhead  Quarry,  within  the  Golf  Links, 
Burntisland,  Fife. 

The  sedimentary  rocks  here  are  mostly  sandstones  and  shales,  more 
or  less  carbonaceous  in  character  Thoy  belong  to  some  part  of 
either  the  Oil  Shale  Series  or  to  the  subdivision  of  the  Lower 
Ciirboniferous  Rocks  yet  below  that.  In  the  lower  part  of  the  quarry 
occurs  a  thin  band  of  a  more  calcareous  type,  which  might  be  regarded 
as  a  finely-laminated  shaly  limestone.  It  is  shown  in  the  section  by 
vertical  ruling.  Two  or  three  sills  of  basic  rock  have  been  intruded 
into  the  sedimentary  rocks  hereabouts,  and  one  of  these,  altered  by 
the  carbonaceous  matter  into  '*  White  Trap,*'  traverses  the  quarry 
from  the  present  section  northwards,  maintaining  throughout  nearly 
the  same  thickness,  and  keeping  to  nearly  one  horizon.  In  Dodhead 
Qaarry  the  ''trap*'  begins  to  thicken,  thin,  die  out,  and  reappear,  in 
a  very  irregular  manner,  as  shown  by  the  figure,  which  has  been 
carefully  drawn  in  the  quarry  from  a  series  of  photographs  taken  with 
the  express  object  of  showing  the  phenomena  in  every  possible  aspect, 
and  checked  on  the  ground  by  actual  measurement. 

It  will  be  noticed  that  the  distance  between  the  limestone  and  the  base 
of  the  sandstone  remains  the  same  at  either  end  of  the  section,  alike 
where  the  trap  is  present  and  where  it  is  wanting.  The  evidence  of 
replacement  of  the  country  rock  by  the  *'  trap'*  is  quite  clear.  There  is 
also  quite  clear  evidence  of  local  displacement  below  the  trap.  This 
phenomenon  sometimes  occurs  in  the  cases  in  which  there  are  two  sills 
present  (as  there  are  in  the  present  case,  the  second  occurring  a  little  below). 

It  is  presumed  that  the  forcible  injection  of  the  magma  forming  the 
sill  displaced  part  of  the  magma  forming  the  dyke-like  extension  of  the 
mass  and  rui>tured  the  sediments  in  the  manner  shown.  The  patch 
marked.!)  is  separately  represented  in  fig.  10. 

The  section  embodies  examples  of  nearly  all  of  the  phenomena  which 
usually  accompany  the  intrusion  of  eruptive  masses,  and  hence  it  has 
been  selected  as  a  typical  section. 


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208  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  EdviH»irgh,  [sios. 

country  rock  around  it  The  volume  remains  just  the  same, 
whether  the  intruder  is  present  or  not ;  just  as  the  Staffordshire 
coal  miners  told  Jukes  was  the  case  in  their  district.  Evidently 
the  older  rock  has  been  gradually  removed  by  some  means,  and 
the  newer  one  just  as  gradually  introduced  into  its  place. 

Mr  Clough  cited  some  cases  in  which  limestone  had  been  eaten 
out  when  the  Whin  Sill  was  being  intruded.  I  can  corroborate 
his  statements  from  my  own  observations  along  the  Cross  Fell 
Escarpment,  which  I  mapped  in  connection  with  the  Geological 
Survey  of  that  district.  Quite  recently  the  Berwickshire  Natural- 
ists' Club  paid  a  visit  to  Dunstanburgh  Castle,  on  the  coast  of 
Northumberland,  where  the  Whin  Sill  occurs  in  the  upper  third 
of  the  Yoredale  Rocks.  In  Queen  Margaret's  Cove,  at  that  place, 
a  mass  of  sandstone,  capped  by  limestone,  has  been  caught  up  in 
the  lower  part  of  the  dolerite,  and  in  the  caught-up  portion 
several  protrusions  of  the  Whin  Sill  into  the  limestone  are  clearly 
shown,  some  of  which  are  surrounded  by  limestone  in  an  un- 
broken condition,  just  as  occurs  in  the  sandstones  and  shales 
already  mentioned. 

Turning  for  the  occasion  to  the  evidence  afforded  by  an 
intrusive  mass  of  dolerite  from  a  foreign  locality,  it  may  be  men- 
tioned that  Mr  Walcot  Gibson  of  the  Geological  Survey  of  Great 
Britain  has  a  photograph  which  shows  the  very  uneven  upper 
surface  of  a  bed  of  dolerite  which  has  been  intruded  into  sand- 
stones. This  photograph  has  been  traced,  and  is  reproduced  in 
outline  in  fig.  12.  It  will  be  observed  that  in  this  instance  again 
there  is  absolutely  no  evidence  of  the  beds  above  the  dolerite 
being  lifted,  or  "  laccolitised,"  so  that  their  dip  conforms  to  the 
surface  of  the  sandstone.  On  the  contrary  it  is  quite  evident 
that  one  of  two  things  has  happened  in  this  case :  either  the  sand- 
stone has  been  deposited  after  the  dolerite,  or  eke  the  latter  has 
eaten  its  way  into  the  sandstone.  As  there  is  abundant  evidence 
of  contact  metamorphism  in  the  rock  in  the  marginal  zone  next 
the  dolerite,  the  alternative  explanation  may  be  at  once  dismissed 
from  further  consideration. 

Passing  now  to  notice  cases  in  which  the  basic  intrusive 
mass  comes  into  contact  with  coal  seams,  beds  of  oil  shale,  of 
blackband  ironstone,  or  other  carbonaceous  rocks,  it  may  be  men- 


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1908-4.]        Mr  J.  G,  Goodchild  on  Inttnmve  Hacks. 


209 


'■'-'(§  '■■"■' 


C^aJt^ 


'hu>tvert       9^ 


,^  ,:^  evcLpk 


^aAaCb'Ch«i*;<^t/»^  Chalk  OM^  ^DJtu 


MX  A 


,<^,fla>6b-'VuiA)^Vu^  CkalH  Yc&mJam*^ 


]YVHia»^ueQua;ifM,  .TStffiMb ^*fe'[    >yv;aL..»tttQu<w.^.B4j^a4fe'.      ^.f>  \ 

PBGC.  ROY.  SOC.  EDIN. — VOL   XXV.  14 


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210  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Ediiiburgh,  [sess 

tioned  that,  when  this  paper  was  read,  Mr  Cadell  cited  a  case  in  his 
own  collieries  at  Bo'ness.  A  bed  of  dolerite  one  foot  in  thickness 
had  been  intruded  into  a  three-foot  coal  seam,  and  it  left  one 
foot  of  coal  above  and  another  foot  below :  one  foot  of  coal  had 
disappeared  and  one  foot  of  dolerite  had  taken  its  place ;  the 
upper  surface  of  the  seam  remainmg  three  feet  above  the  lower, 
just  as  if  no  dolerite  were  present.  Mr  John  Smith  of  Kilwin- 
ning, amongst  other  practical  men,  has  furnished  me  \idth  a 
similar  instance  which  occurs  in  a  quarry  350  yards  N.K  of 
Dykeneuk  farmhouse.  Fig.  1 3  is  an  outline  taken  from  Mr  Smith's 
sketch  sent  to  me.  It  may  be  added  that  my  colleagues  Mr  Grant 
Wilson,  Dr  Peach,  and  others  have  assured  me  that  these  are 
typical  cases.  Mr  Dron,  the  author  of  an  important  work  on  the 
Scottish  Coal-fields,  has  mentioned  other  cases.  I  would  specially 
mention  the  cases  illustrated  by  figs.  24  and  25  in  the  Survey 
Memoir  on  the  Geology  of  Central  and  Western  Fife. 

I-Astly,  a  reference  may  be  made  to  two  of  many  cases  that  might 
be  cited  in  which  a  dolerite  sill  invades  schistose  rocks.  Fig.  14 
is  traced  from  a  photograph  by  Dr  Bernard  Stracey,  F.G.8.,  and 
is  from  near  Beinn  ladain,  Morven.  It  shows  well  the  abrupt 
termination  of  the  sill  against  quite  unbroken  schist.  The  other, 
fig.  15,  is  from  Torr  na  Sealga,  Ross  of  Mull,  from  a  photograph 
by  Mr  David  Russell  of  Markinch,  and  a  drawing  made  on  the 
spot  by  myself. 

We  may  now  consider  a  few  cases  in  which  the  relationship 
of  DYKES  to  the  country  rock  can  be  made  out.  The  current 
belief  in  regard  to  these  certainly  is  clearly  enough  expressed  in 
nearly  all  treatises  on  the  subject.  The  relationship  implied  in 
these  statements  may  be  well  illustrated  by  taking  a  row  of  books, 
placed  on  edge  and  side  by  side,  to  represent  the  country  rock, 
and  then  by  intercalating  other  books  here  and  there  between 
them.  This  illustration  makes  it  clear  that  there  must  be  a 
lateral  shift  corresponding  in  amount  to  the  aggregate  width  of 
the  volumes  intercalated.  If  a  small  book  happens  to  be  thrust 
between  the  leaves  of  a  large  one  in  the  row  the  pages  are  sepa- 
rated from  each  other  to  an  extent  determined  by  the  size  of  the 
smaller  book  in  question,  just  as  was  illustrated  by  the  "  intrusion  " 


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1903-4.]         Mr  J.  G.  Goodchild  on  Intrimve  Rocks.  211 

of  one's  fiugers  into  a  book,  referred  to  above  in  connection  with 
sills.  References  to  the  letterpress  of  almost  any  text-books  on 
Oeology  will  suffice  to  show  that  this  relationship  is  what  the 
authors  had  in  mind  when  they  wrote.  Strangely  enough  the 
Jigures  of  dykes  in  these  books  are  usually  drawn  in  accordance 
with  the  facts,  just  as  figures  are  which  relate  to  sills  or  to  other 
forms  of  intrusive  rocks. 

Out  of  a  large  number  of  cases  a  few  will  suffice  to  show  that 
■dykes  generally  replace  their  own  volume  of  the  rocks  they  invade. 
This  is  the  case,  just  as  it  is  with  sills,  quite  irrespective  of  either 
the  lithological  character  or  the  structure  of  either  the  intruder 
or  the  country  rock.  Fig.  18  is  traced  from  a  photograph  show- 
ing the  upward  termination  of  a  Tertiary  basalt  dyke  in  New  Red 
Sandstone,  near  the  Borough  Cemetery  at  Belfast,  and  figs.  16  and 
17  other  dykes  traversing  Chalk  at  Whitewell  Quarry,  Belfast. 
These  show  an  entire  want  of  correspondence  between  the  opposite 
walls  of  the  country  rock,  such  as  could  not  have  occurred  had 
the  dykes  filled  simple  rents.  For  both  of  these  I  am  indebted  to 
Miss  Andrews.  Fig.  1 1  is  taken  from  a  photograph  by  Mr  Voge, 
showing  the  upward  termination  of  a  similar  dyke  in  Chalk 
at  the  White  Rocks,  near  Portrush.  The  rounded  patch  seen 
above  the  end  of  the  dyke  is  probably  the  continuation  of  the 
same  dyke,  which  has  bent  in  its  upward  course,  so  that  it  passes 
behind  the  face  of  the  cliff  for  a  short  distance.  Fig.  19  shows 
a  tertiary  basalt  dyke,  which  ends  oflf  abruptly  in  a  remarkable 
melange  of  (Devonian)  granite  and  Highland  Schist  at  Torr  na 
Sealga,  in  the  Ross  of  Mull,  already  referred  to.  This  locality  will 
be  referred  to  presently  in  another  connection.  Again,  in  the  cliffs 
formed  by  the  basalt  lavas  of  Skye  and  Mull,  many  fine  examples 
of  the  same  kind  are  clearly  laid  open  to  view.  This  is  especially 
the  case  in  the  grand  range  of  precipices  forming  the  cliff  below 
Beinn  an  Aonidh,  on  the*  south  shore  of  Mull,  west  of  Carsaig. 
There  may  be  seen  dykes  and  sills  of  basic  rocks  which  zigzag 
their  way  up  the  face  of  the  cliff  through  the  various  beds  of  lava 
without  producing  the  least  disturbance  of  these  volcanic  rocks, 
and  without  adding  their  own  thickness  to  that  of  the  pile  in 
which  they  occur.  Fig.  20  shows  some  intrusions  at  Carsaig 
Arches,  sketched  from  the  sea. 


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212  Proceedings  of  Boyal  Society  of  Edinburgh,  [sess. 

Fig.  21  is  traced  from  a  photograph  by  Miss  M.  K.  Andrews  of 
Belfast  at  a  quarry  in  the  Upper  New  Red  Sandstone  of  Scrabo- 
Hill,  County  Down,  in  which  some  dolerite  sills  of  Tertiary  age 
traverse  the  sandstone  without  the  intrusion  being  accompanied 
by  the  slightest  evidence  of  any  mechanical  disturbance,  or  of  any 
"  laccolitisation  "  of  the  overlying  strata.  The  sills  are^  traversed 
by  a  later  dyke,  as  shown. 

Basic  dykes  and  sills  have  been  considered  first  in  relation 
to  the  country  rock  because  they  are  of  more  common  occurrence. 
But  it  can  easily  be  shown  that  precisely  the  same  inter-relation 
exists  also  in  the  cases  in  which  rocks  of  a  more  acid  type  are 
concerned.  There  is  only  one  acid  intrusion  of  any  size  near 
Edinburgh,  which  is  that  of  the  microgranite  of  Black  Hill  in 
the  Pentland  area.  This,  geologically,  is  an  intrusive  mass  of 
Devonian  age,  which  appears  to  represent  a  subterranean  mass  of 
the  more  acid  type  of  rock  whose  lavas  form  the  trachytes  of  the 
Caledonian  Old  Red  Volcanic  Series  of  the  Pentlands.  It  ha& 
evidently  been  formed  at  a  late  period  in  the  history  of  the 
Pentland  volcanoes,  and  has  been  intruded  into,  amongst  other 
rocks,  the  conglomerate  which  lies  at  the  base  of  the  volcanic 
series.  Close  to  Logan  Lee  Waterfall  its  relation  to  the  con- 
glomerate can  be  easily  examined.  At  several  places  its  upper 
surface  has  welded  itself  to  the  old  gravel  which  forms  the  con- 
glomerate referred  to,  and  the  union  has  been  so  firm  that  many 
patches  of  the  conglomerate  may  be  observed  still  adhering  to  the 
face  of  the  granitic  rock.  At  the  foot  of  Logan  Lee  Waterfall 
the  conglomerate  is  much  hardened,  and  veins  and  protrusions  of 
the  microgranite  traverse  it  in  exactly  the  same  manner  as  in  the 
cases  of  the  basic  intrusions  already  described.  The  veins  are 
not  easily  photographed,  though  they  are  readily  seen  on  the 
ground.  But  the  relationship  between  the  one  rock  and  the 
other  may  be  seen  to  be  of  exactly  the  same  kind  as  that  so 
well  illustrated  by  Mr  Griffith  Williams'  beautiful  photograph  in 
the  Brit.  Assoc.  Series  (G.  J.  W.  603),  of  the  case  which  occurs 
at  Tan  y  Grisiau,  in  North  Wales.  Mr  Williams  kindly 
outlined  the  granite  protrusions  upon  a  print  of  the  photograph 
and  sent  it  to  me,  and  a  tracing  made  over  these  lines  is  given 
here  on  fig.  23.     Field  geologists  must  be  fully  aware  that  the 


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1908-4.]        Mr  J.  6.  Goodchild  on  IrUnrnve  Bocks.  213 

aase  cited  is  a  perfectly  typical  one  so  far  as  the  relation  of  veins 
-of  granite  to  the  country  rock  is  concerned.  There  is  not  the 
slightest  evidence  of  any  disruption  of  the  rock  invaded  by  the 
granite ;  but,  on  the  contrary,  it  is  perfectly  clear  that  there  has 
been,  in  these  cases  also,  a  concurrent  removal  of  the  country 
rock  going  on  while  the  introduction  of  the  material  that  after- 
wards consolidated  as  granite  was  in  progress.  But  before  passing 
on  to  consider  in  more  detail  the  mode- of  attack  followed  by  these 
acid  intrusive  rocks,  I  may  perhaps  be  permitted  to  repeat  the 
statement  that  the  acid  and  subacid  dykes  (of  Devonian  age)  which 
traverse  the  Ordovician  and  Silurian  Rocks  of  the  Kendal  and 
Sedbergh  districts,  referred  to  -at  the  commencement  of  this  paper, 
behave  in  precisely  the  same  manner  as  the  granite  veins  just  cited. 
The  lamprophyre  occurring  at  Swindale  Beck,  Knock,  near 
Appleby,  which  was  figured  in  Teall's  British  Petrography  as  a 
typical  minette,  certainly  eats  its  way  into  the  country  rock 
in  the  manner  already  described  in  so  many  other  cases.  I 
have  figured  it  in  plan  in  the  Geological  Survey  Memoir  on 
Sheet  102  S.W.,  to  which  the  reader  may  be  referred. 

Lastly,  so  far  as  the  mode  of  occurrence  of  dykes  is  concerned, 
the  well-known  pitchstoue  of  Corriegills  Shore,  on  the  east  coast 
of  Arran,  sends  finger-like  ramifications  into  the  enclosing  rock, 
some  of  which  are  clearly  seen  to  terminate  against  the  Bunter 
Sandstone  around  it  in  the  manner  already  described  in  connection 
with  the  dykes  of  basalt.  One  specimen  showing  this  mode  of 
•occurrence  of  the  pitchstone  is  exhibited  in  the  Scottish  Collection 
■already  referred  to. 

Leaving  this  part  of  the  subject  for  the  present,  it  may  be 
remarked  here  that  there  are  some  singular  features  about  basic 
•dykes  in  general  which  may  be  noticed  in  the  present  connection. 
These  are  (1)  the  very  small  proportion  which  their  width  bears  to 
their  length  (and  usually  to  their  depth) ;  (2)  their  wonderful  uni- 
formity of  composition  as  a  whole,  which  they  maintain  throughout 
the  whole  of  their  extent ;  (3)  the  remarkable  parallelism  of  their 
-enclosing  walls  as  a  rule ;  (4)  the  fact  that  the  dykes  most  extensive 
in  their  range  are  those  in  which  lime-soda  felspars  predominate. 
Furthermore,  the  mode  of  occurrence  of  a  basic  dyke  suggests 
that)  the  attacking  surface  formed  by  its  magma  was  limited  to  its 


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214  Proceedings  of  Eoyal  Society  of  Edinburgh.         [i 


U»itt-ft»aa.      G<<UiXi>aM<Su>ag.   ^40 


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1903-4.]        Mr  J.  G,  Groodchild  on  Intrusive  Bocks. 


215 


<  Ik^*Ut«*,  Te»f*fc4/UXa4,  CU»>c*i^i«.«<ia' 


^■'    '^         ,.,,.......«nnnnniil"''''""'''''''"""'"'''^^ 


TSSC^IJBESr 


Fig.  26. 

Fig.  26  bos  been  drawn  up  so  as  to  afford  a  conspectus  of  the  proportions  in 
which  the  Essential  Minerals  of  the  Eruptive  Rocks  occur  in  any  one  of 
the  sections  into  which  the  whole  lithological  series  can  be  divided.  For 
example,  taking  the  second  band,  the  proportions  in  which  the  plagiodase 
felspars  occur  relatively  to  the  ferro-magneeian  silicates  in  any  one  of  either 
the  sub-basic  or  the  basic  eruptive  rocks,  can  be  estimated  by  comparing 
the  distance  above  the  thick  curved  line  traversing  the  middle  with  that 
below,  measured  at  any  point  along  a  line  perpendicular  to  the  base  of 
the  diagram.  The  same  method  can  be  employed  in  the  case  of  any 
other  of  the  subdivisions  of  the  series. 

The  principle  of  arrangement  followed  is  based,  primarily,  upon  the 
percentage  of  silica  present — the  rocks  containing  highest  percentage 
being  represented  at  the  top  lert-hand,  and  those  with  the  lowest  at 
the  bottom  right ;  and,  secondarily,  with  reference  to  the  nature  of  the 
dominant  alkali,  or  alkaline  earth,  which  characterises  each  of  the 
compounds. 

The  classes  of  rocks  formed  of  these  components  may  be  grouped  under 
three  primary  categories,  to  each  of  which  one  subdivision  of  the  diagram 
is  devoted.  At  the  top  are  represented  the  Mineral  Combinations  arising 
from  the  action  of  a  Potash  Magma  upon  other  rocks  in  which  the 
dominant  alkali  is  Soda.  The  middle  of  the  diagram  includes  those 
which  are  here  regarded  as  due  to  the  action  of  a  Soda- Lime  Magma 
upon  sedimentary  rocks.  The  lowest  subdivision  is  intended  to  represent 
the  products  of  consolidation  of  a  Ferro-magnesian  Magma.  Further 
subdivisions,  which  are  sometimes  convenient  for  use,  are  made  in 
accordance  with  the  dominant  substance,  and  are  as  follows:  rocks 
characterised  by  minerals  containing  Potash,  Potash-Soda,  Soda,  Soda- 
Lime,  Lime-Soda,  Lime,  Lime-Magnesia,  Magnesia. 

The  graphical  method  here  employed  can  be  used  also  to  illustrate  the 
proportions  of  each  of  the  mineral  constituents  present  in  the  Aplites  (or 
more  acid  segregations  of  each  group),  as  well  as  those  of  the  Pegmatites 
and  Gneisses  whose  comi)ositiou  allies  them  to  that  of  their  massive 
prototypes. 


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216  ProceediTigs  of  Roycd  Society  of  Edinburgh,  [i 

extremities,  >.e.,  to  the  ends  and  the  upper  side  of  the  intrusive 
mass.  Wedge-shaped  intrusions  are  much  less  common  in  the 
case  of  the  dykes  composed  of  hasic,  or  of  sub-basic,  materials 
than  in  those  which  contain  potash  felspars.  Why  this  is  the 
case  is  not  clear. 

Occasionally  basic  dykes  are  clearly  seen  to  terminate  down- 
wards. Sir  Archibald  Geikie  has  lately  figured  some  examples 
from  Fife  which  are  seen  to  do  this.  But  all  those  which  do  so 
l)elong,  I  think,  to  a  diflferent  category  from  the  one  which  is  here 
specially  under  consideration,  and  they  will  be  considered  in  that 
connection  in  another  paper. 

It  seems  to  be  generally  assumed  that  d^es  often  coincide 
with  lines  of  fault.  In  the  course  of  an  extensive  field  experience 
I  have  but  rarely  met  with  cases  in  which  it  was  quite  clear  that 
this  was  so :  but  as  geologists  of  good  repute  say  that  such  cases 
are  of  common  occurrence,  I  will  not  press  my  own  convictions  too 
far.  It  seems  to  me  that  in  many  cases  where  a  dyke  has  risen  in 
contiguity  to  a  fault  of  older  date  that  the  dyke  is  not  in  the  least 
influenced  by  the  old  plane  of  weakness.  Quite  commonly,  how- 
ever, older  dykes  may  deflect  the  course  of  a  newer  one  which  has 
cut  obliquely  across  them,  in  a  manner  analogous  to  that  which 
happens  where  a  newer  fault  is  "trailed"  by  an  older  one — a 
phenomenon  quite  diflferent  in  its  nature  from  the  "  heave "  pro- 
duced when  an  older  fault  and  its  enclosing  rock  are  bodily  shifted 
by  a  later  thrust.  This  is  only  referred  to  here  because  there 
seems  to  have  been  some  misunderstanding  regarding  the  relative 
ages  of  two  dykes  of  which  one  has  gone  oflT  on  one  side  of  another 
dyke  in  a  different  plane  from  that  at  which  the  two  met  on  the 
other.  I  have  previously  discussed  this  matter  at  some  length  in 
a  paper  on  "Faults"  in  the  Trans,  Edin,  Geol.  Sac.  for  1889, 
pp.  71-74. 

There  is  a  fine  example  of  the  influence  of  an  older  sill  upon  thi^ 
upward  course  of  a  dyke  on  the  west  shore  of  Carsaig  Bay  in  Mull. 
The  dyke  rises  through  Lias  Shales,  and  on  coming  near  to  the 
base  of  the  sill  the  dyke  suddenly  spreads  out  laterally,  so  as  to 
pass  on  both  sides  into  a  sill,  which  it  does,  however,  without 
coalescing  with  the  older  one,  or  even  quite  reaching  it.  On 
either  side  the  lateral  extension  of  the  dyke  thins  out  within  a 


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1903-4.]        Mr  J.  G.  Goodchild  an  Intnisive  Rocks.  217 

short  distance.  It  may  well  have  been  the  case  that  a  difference 
•of  relative  temperature  of  the  country  rocks  and  the  magma  at  the 
ipart  where  the  dyke  passes  into  the  form  of  a  sill  may  have  had 
something  to  do  with  the  change  of  direction.     (See  fig.  22.) 

The  fact  just  referred  to  suggests  the  question,  why  should 
the  same  magma  eat  its  way  in  a  horizontal  plane  at  one  pa^t  and 
4it  another  within  the  same  type  of  country  rock  make  its  way 
upwards  in  a  nearly  vertical  plane  1  I^ossibly  the  answer  to  the 
question  may  be  that  the  magma  was  injected  from  below  obliquely 
upward  and  outward  from  the  focus,  and  that  its  course,  as  a 
lyhole,  has  really  followed  the  oblique  direction;  but  as  it  tra- 
Tersed  strata  of  very  varying  degrees  of  resistance  to  the  thrust, 
the  magma  eats  its  way  upwards  in  a  zigzag  manner,  forming  a 
sill  on  one  platform,  then  going  off  as  a  dyke,  again  as  a  sill,  and 
^o  on  (see  fig.  27,  p.  226).  The  phenomenon  may  be  illustrated  by 
attempting  to  scarp  a  fluted  surface  by  drawing  the  end  of  a  walk- 
ing-stick in  an  oblique  direction  across  the  flutinga.  The  stick  will 
run  along  one  of  the  flutings,  make  a  jump  to  the  next,  along  that 
•again  in  a  line  nearly  parallel  to  the  first  one,  and  so  on.  This  is 
what  is  above  referred  to  as  "  trailing,"  which  is  a  phenomenon  of 
-common  occurrence  wherever  a  newer  set  of  faults  crosses  an  older 
set  in  an  oblique  direction. 

On  the  view  just  set  forth,  the  abundant  Tertiary  dykes  of 
North  Britain  may  be  represented  by  sills  at  no  great  depth  below 
the  surface,  and  need  not  be  supposed  to  extend  downwards  to  any- 
thing like  the  depth  with  which  they  are  credited. 

A  few  additional  examples,  out  of  a  great  many  that  might  be 
selected  from  amongst  Scottish  writers  on  Geology,  will  now  be 
referred  to,  in  which  those  writers  have  figured  the  relationship 
which  actually  exists  between  an  intrusive  rock  and  the  rocks  it 
invades.  For  this  purpose  I  give  a  list  selected  from  Sir 
Archibald  Geikie's  Ancient  Volcanoes^  and  his  two  recently-issued 
memoirs  on  the  Geology  of  Fife ;  the  references  preceded  by  an 
asterisk  are  particularly  noteworthy  : 

Ancient  Volcanoes  of  Great  Britain^  vol.  ii..  Figs.  238,  241- 
245,  248,  249,  251,  *255,  304,  ^322,  323,  329,  349,  351,  353-5, 
561,  371,  380,  *381.     "Geology  of  Central  and  Western  Fife" 


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218  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Ediiiburg]i,  [sbss. 

{Menis,  Geol  Survey),  Figs.  18,  *20,  *23-25.  "Geology  of  Eastern 
Fife  "  {Mems,  Geol.  Survey),  Figs.  32,  60,  62.  To  these  reference 
may  be  made  to  Mr  David  Bums'  diagrams  relating  to  the  Whin 
•Sill  which  illustrates  his  paper  in  the  Proceedings  N.  of  England 
Institute  of  Mining  and  MechaniccU  Engineers,  vol.  xxvii.,  Plate  Y. 
The  illustrations  cited  relate  to  a  considerable  variety  of  petro- 
graphical  types,  of  both  the  intruding  masses  and  rocks  invaded. 
They  include  several  figures  of  sections  in  which  eruptive  roc1(s 
are  clearly  seen  to  cut  out  coal  seams — not  merely  by  altering 
their  quality,  so  that  they  have  been  rendered  unfit  for  ordinary 
uses,  but  by  actually  replacing  the  coal  seams,  in  the  same  manner 
as  many  intrusive  rocks  occupy  the  place  of  other  materials  which 
have  been  removed,  concurrently  with  the  act  of  intrusion.  As 
before  remarked,  this  feature  is  one  of  considerable  importance  both 
from  a  commercial  point  of  view  and  on  account  of  its  bearing 
upon  the  questions  here  under  consideration. 

I  commend  the  facts  above  stated  to  the  careful  considera- 
tion of  all  unprejudiced  geologists.  It  must  be  quite  evident  to 
such  workers,  after  a  study  of  the  foregoing  considerations,  that  the 
views  commonly  held  with  regard  to  intrusive  rocks  will  have  to  be 
modified  to  a  very  considerable  extent.  That  must  be  done,  what- 
ever view  one  may  entertain  with  regard  to  how  these  facts  have 
been  brought  about.  It  may  be  well  to  remark  here  that  I  do  not 
wish  the  readers  to  understand  that  any  other  signs  of  mechanical 
rupture  than  those  specially  referred  to  do  not  exist ;  but  I 
certainly  do  intend  to  convey  the  idea  that  such  evidence  is  of 
very  much  less  common  occurrence  than  most  people  seem  to  believe^ 
Furthermore,  I  state  emphatically  that  even  in  the  cases  where 
there  undoubtedly  is  evidence  of  a  certain  amount  of  displacement^ 
the  extent  of  that  displacement  is,  as'  a  rule,  by  no  means  com- 
mensurate with  the  volume  of  the  rock  intruded.  It  appears  likely 
that  the  degree  of  viscosity  of  the  magma  on  the  one  hand,  and 
the  resistance  presented  to  the  intrusive  force  on  the  other,  are  the 
chief  factors  which  determine  the  mode  of  occurrence  of  intrusive 
masses.  Where  a  viscous,  or  a  half-consolidated,  mass  is  being  forced 
between  imperfectly  consolidated  materials,  and  under  relatively 
small  superincumbent  pressure,  it  is  most  likely  that  the  overlying. 


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i»03-4.]         Mr  J.  G.  Groodchild  on  Intrusive  Bocks,  211> 

rocks  would  actually  lift  and  thus  conform  to  the  upper  boundary 
of  the  intrusion.  But  where  the  magma  is  more  fluid,  and  th& 
pressure  to  be  overcome  surpasses  some,  as  yet  undetermined, 
amount,  solution  ensues,  and  the  process  becomes  a  physico- 
chemical  one  instead  of  a  purely  mechanical  act. 

At  any  rate,  and  by  whatever  means  the  process  may  have  been 
carried  out,  I  can  confidently  assure  my  fellow-workers  that  the 
replacive  mode  of  occurrence  of  intrusive  masses  is  the  rule  and 
not  the  exception.  The  belief  founded  upon  these  facts  is  by 
no  means  what  it  has  lately  been  described — a  superstitious  belief 
entertained  by  ignorant  miners,  but  is  one  that  geologists  in 
general  will  have  sooner  or  later  to  accept,  whether  that  belief  i» 
in  accordauce  with  preconceived  ideas  or  not. 

Taking  it  for  granted  that  the  evidence  of  replacement  ia 
admitted,  there  next  arises  the  question  as  to  how  the  missing  rock 
has  been  removed.  Evidence  bearing  upon  this,  and  helping  to 
furnish  some  kind  of  answer  to  that  question,  is  certainly  not 
entirely  wanting.  It  will  be  found  in  many  cases  that  Nature 
has  not  always  finished  the  work  of  removing  the  rock  so  neatly 
that  no  trace  of  the  mode  of  attack  can  be  found.  Yarioua 
stages  may  be  seen  when  a  large  number  of  junctions  come  to  bo 
examined,  and  by  patient  investigation  it  is  quite  possible  to- 
arrive  at  a  tolerably  good  idea  regarding  the  method  that  has  been 
followed.  A  brief  description  of  a  few  cases  observed  by  myself 
may  be  given  first,  and  to  these  may  be  added  some  observations, 
made  by  other  geologists,  selected  from  the  writings  of  those  whose 
claim  to  be  regarded  as  careful  observers  probably  no  one  will 
question.  Choice  will  be  made  of  the  phenomena  at  first  on  a 
large  scale,  and  I  shall  choose  the  mode  of  attack  followed  by 
granite  as  being  the  most  suitable  for  the  purpose  in  view.  One  of 
the  best  examples  is  that  presented  by  the  marginal  zone  of  the 
Ross  of  Mull  granite.  That  granite  rises  through  some  ancient 
rocks  of  sedimentary  origin,  which  pertain,  I  think,  to  the  lower 
part  of  the  Highland  Schists.  They  are  chiefly  greywackes  and 
flaggy  quartzites  which  had  been  much  affected  by  dynamic 
metamorphism  long  prior  to  the  intrusion  of  the  granite.  The 
marginal  zone  is  one  of  considerable  width,  and  is  by  no  means  a 
mere  line,  as  one  is  apt  to  suppose  is  usually  the  case.     For  quite 


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220  Proceedifigs  of  BoycU  Society  of  Edinburgh,  [sess. 

a  quarter  of  a  mile,  iu  some  parts,  it  is  difficult  to  say  whether 
the  rocks  should  be  described  as  schists  traversed  by  veins  of 
granite,  or  granite  enveloping  blocks  of  schist,  I  do  not,  however, 
mean  to  convey  the  idea  by  this  that  there  is  any  lithological 
passage  of  the  one  type  into  the  other ;  for  that  there  certainly  is 
not.  On  the  contrary,  the  line  between  the  granite  and  the  schist 
is  clearly  seen  in  hand  specimens  to  be  quite  sharp  and  well-defined, 
and,  under  the  microscope,  the  presence  of  crystalline  felspar  on 
one  side  of  the  boundary  line  and  its  absence  on  the  other  can 
also  readily  be  made  out.  The  field  relations  of  these  rocks,  as 
aeen.at  Torr  na  Sealga,-  is  shown  in  fig.  15  already  referred  to.* 

It  may  be  remarked,  in  passing,  that  having  regard  to  the 
fact  that  a  zone  consisting  of  closely  interwoven,  or  spliced,  granite 
and  schist  extends  for  a  considerable  distance  around  the  granite 
proper,  one  is  led  to  speculate  what  the  result  would  be  were  the 
whole  area  subjected  to  extensive  dynamic  metamorphism.  The 
granite  would  deform  into  muscovite-biotite  gneiss,  the  plexus  of 
granite  veins  and  fragments  of  hornfelsed  greywacke,  quartzite, 
and  mica  schist,  would  form  a  gneissoid  complex  of  a  second  kind, 
while  the  schists  themselves  would  form  a  third  group,  the  only 
feature  common  to  the  whole  being  a  general  parallelism  of  the 
planes  of  schistosity.  There  cannot  be  much  doubt  that  many 
older  complex  areas  of  this  kind  occurring  in  the  Highlands  and 
elsewhere  have  been  affected  in  this  manner,  and  it  may  well  be 
the  case  that  some  of  the  anomalous  groups  of  gneisses  and 
gneissoid  rocks  of  the  Central  Highlands  of  Scotland  owe  much 
of  their  present  character  to  the  fact  that  the  parent  rocks  were 
of  the  type  seen  in  the  marginal  zones  of  the  Ross  of  Mull  granite. 

But,  to  return  to  the  consideration  of  the  mode  of  attack 
followed  by  the  granite  in  this  area ;  what  has  really  happened  can 
easily  be  made  out.  The  granite  sends  forward  into  the  schist  thin 
wedges  of  its  own  material,  which  thicken  as  they  advance  along 
the  joints  or  other  divisional  planes,  and  do  so  at  the  expense  of 
the  schist.  The  impression  one  gathers  from  a  study  of  numerous 
examples  of  this  nature  is  that  the  whole  periphery  of  the  granitic 
magma  exercised  a  corrosive  effect  wherever  it  came  into  con- 

♦  See  a  paper  by  the  present  author,  **  On  a  Granite  Junction  in  the  Isle  of 
Mull,"  Oeol.  Mag.,  dec.  til,  vol.  ix.  pp.  447-451  (1898). 


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1903-4.]        Mr  J.  G.  GoodchDd  an  Intrusive  Rocks,  221 

tact  with  the  rock  invaded.     Hence  the  magma  was  enabled  to 
advance  along  the  joints  and  other  divisional  planes  of  the  country 
rock.     Every  stage  of  the  process  can  be  traced,  from  the  first 
insinuation  of  a  thread,  or  a  knife  edge,  of  granite,  through  the 
later  stages  of  development,  where  the  advancing  mass  has  widened 
out,  and  has  begun  to  form  a  thick  wedge,  up  to  the  point  where 
it  has  eaten  its  way  so  far  into  the  adjoining  rock  that  the  portion 
attacked  has  become  surrounded  by  the  fluid  magma,  and  thus 
ready  to  float  away  as  an  isolated  mass  into  what  one  may  term 
the  trunk  stream.     (Here,  perhaps,  it  may  be  as  well  to  repeat 
the  remark  that  I  do  not  entertain  the  belief  that  the  fluid  granite 
is  simply  so  much  quartzite  or  greywacke  in  a  different  state  from 
what  it  was  at  first.      Granite  cannot  be  made   simply  out  of 
greywacke,  much  less  out  of  quartzites,  for  there  are  several  im- 
portant constituents  present  in  the  eruptive  rock  which  are  absent 
from  the  other.)     But  the  advance  of  the  veins  of  granite  into 
the   schists,   the   enlargement,    ramification,   and    coalescence    of 
contiguous  veins,  carried  on  until  the  two  are  closely  spliced  into 
one,  can  be  seen  in  every  stage  of  progress.     Whatever  may  have 
been  the  particular  solvent,  its  mode  of  operation  is  sufficiently 
evident  from  a  study  of   the  various  intermediate  stages  in  the 
process  of,  what  may  be  termed,  the  mastication  and  assimilation 
of  which  records  have  been  left.     The  process  has  clearly  been 
of  a  physico-chemical  nature,  and  one  in  which  the  continual  sub- 
division of  the  rock  undergoing  attack  has  been  effected  by  the 
erosive  action  of  the  peripheral  parts  of  the  magma.     Each  stage 
in  the  process  of  comminution  has  led  to  an  increase  of  the  area 
being  exposed  to  attack,  and  has  led,  finally,  to  the  complete  solu- 
tion of  the  fragments.    I  have  long  regarded  the  basic  inclusions  so 
often  found  in  plutonic  masses  as  incompletely  assimilated  portions 
of  the  country  rock.     This  view,  I   am  glad   to  notice,  is  now 
being  adopted  by  many  of  the  rising  generation  of  field  geologists. 
Some  reference  has  already  been  made  to  the  different  mode 
of  attack  followed  by  the  more  basic  as  compared  with  the  more 
acid  magmas  which,  by  the  way,  I  should  like  to  refer  to  hence- 
forth under  the  respective  terms  soda  magma  and  potaj^h  magma. 
The  evidence  appears  to  suggest  that  the  soda  magmas  in  general 
acted  with  more  corrosive  effects  at  the  extremities  of  their  masses. 


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1222  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh,  [sim. 

Avhile  the  potash  magmas  often  appear  to  have  possessed  equal 
-corrosive  power  over  the  whole  of  their  surface  in  contact  with  the 
rock  undergoing  attack.  A  thin  dyke,  or  a  thin  sill,  of  a  basic  lock, 
has  made  its  way  underground  iis  a  nearly  parallel  sheet,  in  some 
■cases  over  an  area  which  may  be  hundreds  of  square  miles  in 
extent,  and,  what  is  still  more  remarkable,  it  has  done  so  notwith- 
standing the  fact  that  the  rock  invaded  was  at  a  lower  temperature 
than  the  soda  magma.  Had  the  corrosive  effect  been  equal  over 
the  entire  surface  in  contact  with  the  country  rock,  it  must  be  obvious 
that  the  part  first  invaded,  that  is  to  say,  the  part  nearest  the  conduit 
which  gave  emission  to  the  fluid  magma  from  below — would  be  the 
parts  where  the  intruded  rock  would  be  very  much  thicker  than  at 
the  points  near  the  extremities.  But  many  intrusive  sheets  appear 
to  retain  nearly  the  same  thickness  for  a  distance  of  many  miles. 
The  Whin  Sill,  for  example,  varies  but  little  from  the  mean  thick- 
ness  throughout  the  greater  part  of  the  extensive  area  it  occupies. 
The  potash  magmas,  on  the  other  hand,  usually  give  rise  to  short  and 
thick  lenticular  masses,  and  it  is  very  rarely  indeed  that  they  appear 
^is  sheets  with  parallel  boundaries.  One  is,  of  course,  reminded  by 
these  facts  of  the  similar  behaviour  of  basic  lavas,  which  may  flow 
with  comparatively  little  variation  in  thickness  for  thirty,  forty,  or 
«ven  fifty,  miles,  while  a  lava  stream  of  acid  composition  but  rarely 
extends  more  than  a  very  few  miles  from  its  point  of  emission,  and 
in  many  cases  does  not  get  more  than  a  few  hundred  yards  away 
from  that  point  before  it  comes  to  a  standstill.  Of  course  the 
temperature  of  the  country  rock  must  be  an  important  factijr  in 
this  connection  in  the  case  of  all  intrusive  masses,  even  in  those  of 
trappean,  as  distinguished  from  plutonic,  origin.  Still,  the  fact 
remains,  that  potash  magmas  erode  over  their  entire  surface,  so 
that  they  tend  to  eat  tlieir  way  outward  in  the  form  of  gradually- 
enlarging  wedges.  It  follows  tliat  the  rock  surfaces  on  either  side 
of  one  of  these  wedges  may  retain  much  similarity  of  form,  and 
that  the  shapes  of  the  opposite  sides  of  a  wedge  may  nearly  or 
quite  match,  even  though  a  considerable  quantity  of  the  interven- 
ing rock  may  have  been  removed. 

For  the  information  of  those  who  may  wish  to  examine  the 
evidence,  it  may  be  mentioned  here  that  the  best  sections  where 
tlie  relations  of  the  Ross  of  Mull  granite  to  the  country  rock  can 


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1908-4.]        Mr  J.  G.  Goodchild  on  Intrusive  Bocks.  223 

be  studied  are  all  within  easy  distances  of  Bimessan,  where  the 
Dunara  Castle  calls  twice  weekly  from  Glasgow.  There  are 
large  quarries  at  Camas  Tuadh,  Ardalanish,  and  other  ]>laces  near, 
^and  there  are  exceptionally  fine  coast  sections  at  Carraig  Mhor  and 
Torr  na  Sealga,  which  can  easily  be  examined  from  Bunessan. 
Even  in  passing  by  steamer  from  lona  to  Oban  the  broader  features 
-can  easily  be  made  out  with  the  aid  of  a  good  field-glass. 

On  referring  to  the  older  literature  of  the  subject  I  find  that 
some  of  the  statements  here  put  forth  regarding  the  granite  margins 
had,  to  some  extent,  been  anticipated  by  previous  writers.  Thus 
M'Culloch  gives  a  most  interesting  account  of  the  relationship 
between  the  granite  of  Cruachan  and  the  schists  around,  which 
tallies  in  almost  every  respect  with  what  I  observed  in  the  Ross  of 
Mull  (see  Trans.  Oeol.  Sac.  Lond.,  vol.  iv.,  pp.  126  et  seq.), 
Jameson  noticed  the  same  features  in  connection  with  the  granite 
-of  Braemar  (Annals  of  Philosophy,  vol.  iv.,  p.  419).  Mr  Came  has 
recorded  similar  facts  around  the  granite  of  Cornwall  ( GeoL  Trans, 
•of  Cornwall,  vol.  i.,  p.  22).  So  did  Dr  Davy;  also  Dr  Boase, 
De  la  Beche,  and  others.  But  as  these  observers  were  not  well 
acquainted  with  modern  petrographical  methods,  it  may  be  ets  well 
to  add  to  their  testimony  the  evidence  lately  put  forth  by  one  of 
our  ablest  workers  in  that  department  of  science,  which  is  accord- 
ingly subjoined. 

Since  my  paper  "  On  a  Granite  Junction  in  the  Ross  of  Mull  " 
was  published,  my  colleague,  Mr  Kynaston,  has  mapped  the  area 
around  the  granite  mass  of  Ben  Cruachan,  which  is  probably  of 
the  same  age  as  the  granite  of  the  Ross  of  Mull,  and,  like  that  mass, 
it  rises  through  the  Highland  Metamorphic  Series.  In  the 
JSummary  of  Progress  of  the  Geological  Survey  of  the  United 
Kingdom  for  1900  an  outline  is  given  of  Mr  Kynaston's  conclu- 
sions. These  are  so  pertinent  to  the  subject  at  present  under 
consideration  that  no  apology  is  needed  for  quoting  them  nearly 
in  full.     The  quotation,  pp.  73-74,  is  as  follows : 

"  Great  difficulty  was  experienced  in  mapping  out  the  boundary 
line  between  the  granite  and  the  schists  owing  to  the  complicated 
nature  of  the  marginal  area.  Indeed,  in  some  places  the  granite 
and  the  schistose  rocks  are  so  intennixed  that  no  sharply-marked 
boundary-line  can  be  drawn  between  them.  .  .  .  The  contact  zone 


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224  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh.  \\ 

consists  of  a  network  of  sills,  veins,  bands,  and  tongue-like  pro> 
trusions  of  granite,  covering  a  belt  of  mountainous  ground  sometimes 
more  than  a  mile  broad.  The  vein-like  offshoots  do  not,  as  a  rule, 
anastomose  with  one  another,  but  tend  to  run  in  a  roughly-parallel 
direction,  coinciding  with  the  original  planes  of  foliation  of  the 
schists,  although  irregular  intrusions  of  granite,  having  no  apparent 
relation  to  any  planes  of  weakness,  are  not  uncommon.  The  com- 
plication is  such  that  a  line  can  only  with  difficulty  be  drawn 
between  schists  crowded  with  granite  veins  and  sill-like  bands, 
and  granite  crowded  with  strips  and  inclusions  of  schist  of  every 
size  up  to  a  mile  or  more  in  length.  ...  As  we  approach  the  main 
mass  of  the  granite  the  schists  are  frequently  seen  to  be  sa 
impregnated  with  granitic  material  that  it  is  impossible  in  a 
hand-specimen  to  distinguish  the  igneous  portion  from  the  material 
of  sedimentary  origin.  ...  In  many  places  the  schists  have  been 
broken  up  under  the  process  of  injection  and  a  breccia  has  been 
formed  ....  consisting  of  a  confused  mingling  of  altered  schistose 
fragments  in  a  granitic  matrix  ....  [Some  of  the]  fragments  are 
usually  crowded  with  flakes  of  secondary  biotite  in  more  or  less 
parallel  layers,  and  are  somewhat  suggestive  of  the  origin  of  certain 
ill-defined  patches  rich  in  biotite,  occasionally  seen  in  the  granite.'* 
[My  own  remarks  about  these  inclusions,  which  form  a  most 
'conspicuous  feature  in  the  granites  of  Ballachulish,  were  written^ 
but  not  published,  before  I  knew  that  Mr  Kynaston  had  published 
the  note.     J.  G.  G.] 

As  contact  or  thermo-metamorphism  of  the  country  rock 
must  play  an  important  part  in  the  subsequent  processes  of 
conversion,  especially  in  the  cases  where  the  preliminary  changes, 
have  taken  place  under  plutonic  conditions,  a  few  remarks  here 
upon  that  subject  may  well  be  given.  In  the  case  of  certain 
schists,  and  of  some  of  the  older  grey  wackes,  both  of  which  may 
have  contained  mineral  matter  of  eruptive  origin  before  they  were 
affected  by  thermo-metamorphism,  there  is  usually  some  advance 
towards  the  conversion  of  the  rock  into  homfels,  knotted  schist,, 
andalusite  rock  and  the  like.  Kadiolarian  cherts  have  been  altered 
into  granular  quartz,  almost  into  quartzite,  around  the  Galloways 
granites,  and  graptolitic  mudstones  into  graphitic  schist.  In 
Mull,  in   Glenco,  and   in   the   Lake   District,  the   Green  Earths^ 


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1903-4.]         Mr  J.  6.  Goodchild  on  Intrusive  Rocks,  225 

which  formerly  occupied  the  vapour-cavities  of  the  lavas  have 
been  converted  by  subsequent  thermo-metamorphism  into  various 
forms  of  Epidote  and  the  associated  zeolites  into  Albite  or  other 
felspars.  These  are  common  eifects  in  the  areas  that  have  been 
affected  by  thermo-metamorphic  action. 

But  some  of  the  most  striking  cases  of  the  development  of 
minerals  by  the  causes  which  have  given  rise  in  adjacent  areas 
to  eruptive  masses  of  deep-seated  origin  are  to  be  found  in  the 
case  of  the  metamorphic  marbles  which  occur  in  various  parts 
of  the  Highlands  of  Scotland  and  elsewhere.  Referring 
to  the  specimens  in  the  Scottish  Mineral  Collection,  I  find 
the  foUowing  species  occurring  within  the  substance  of  these 
altered  limestones: — Quartz,  Andesine,  Anorthite,  Tremolite, 
Diopside,  Forsterite,  Biotite,  Phlogopite,  Sphene  and  Apatite, 
besides  Graphite,  Idocrase,  Garnet,  Zoisite,  Wollastonite,  and  a 
variety  of  other  minerals  with  which  at  present  we  are  not 
concerned.  The  feature  of  special  interest  in  these  cases  is  the 
development  within  the  limestone  by  the  same  causes  to  which 
the  formation  of  eruptive  rocks  is  due  (whatever  that  may  be),  of 
an  assemblage  of  rock-forming  minerals  which  are  either  identical 
with  those  which  characterise  rocks  of  eruptive  origin,  or  else  are 
allied  to  them.  Amongst  these  are  Quartz,  two  felspars  (or  more 
than  two);  Tremolite,  as  a  representative  of  the  Amphiboles; 
Diopside  and  Wollastonite  as  representatives  of  the  group  to  which 
Pyroxene  belongs ;  Forsterite,  which  is  closely  allied  to  Olivine ; 
two  micas  (perhaps  three),  and  other  rock-forming  minerals.  Yet 
no  one  seems  to  doubt  that  these  minerals  have  been  developed  by 
metamorphic  changes  out  of  impurities  which  occurred  within  the 
marble.  But  it  does  not  matter  in  the  present  connection  whether 
the  limestone  was  impure  to  begin  with,  and  contained  in  those 
impurities  the  substances  required  for  making  the  silicates  referred 
to,  or  whether  part  of  these  requisites  may  have  been  introduced 
into  the  rock  through  the  agency  of  the  thermal  waters  which 
have  been  concerned  in  bringing  about  the  final  result.  Any  way, 
the  fact  is  one  of  great  importance  in  the  present  connection,  and 
must  on  no  account  be  allowed  to  drop  t)ut  of  sight. 


PROC.  KOY.  SOC.  KDIN. — VOL.  XXV.  15 


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226  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh,  [sbss. 


Fio.  27. 

(Note  added  April  22,  1904.) 

The  remainder  of  the  paper  dealt  with  theoretical  considerations,  which 
may  be  summarised  as  follows  : — 

In  explanation  of  the  facts,  it  is  suggested  that  four  chief  factors  are  con- 
cerned, which  are  as  follows : — (1)  Earth  movements,  which  generate  the  heat 
required  for  volcanic  action,  and  also  furnish  the  motive  power  by  which  the 
magma  is  forced  outwards  from  the  focus.  (2)  The  presence,  at  the  focus  of  a 
volcano,  of  saline  waters,  whose  dissolved  salts  become  concentrated  by  pro- 
longed boiling,  and  the  consequent  escape  of  steam  at  the  surface.  These 
saline  solutions,  operating  at  high  pressures  and  temperatures,  dissolve  the 
rock  in  various  directions  around  the  volcanic  focus,  ana  add  their  own  alkalis 
to  the  magma  so  formed.  (3)  An  excess  of  alkalis  (es{)ecially  of  soda)  in  the 
magma,  whereby  it  is  enabled  to  gradually  extend  its  ramifications  into  the 
rock  around  its  focus.  (4)  Circulatory  movements  from  the  extremities  of  the 
system  to  the  volcanic  focus  and  back,  analogous  to  the  movements  of  the  hot 
water  in  the  pipes  of  a  heating  apparatus.  This  circulation  behaved  in  a 
manner  analogous  to  that  of  the  circulatory  system  in  a  tree,  in  which  the 
leaves  generate  one  set  of  products,  and  the  roots  carry  in  another,  in  the 
shape  of  water  and  alkalis.  These  commingle,  and  then  travel  outwards  from 
below,  to  bo  finally  left  in  the  solid  form,  and  thus  contribute  to  the  extension 
of  the  whole. 

An  ordinan'  sedimentary  aggregate,  to  which  the  dissolved  constituents  of 
sea-water  had  been  added,  oj^erating  under  high  temperatures  and  pressures, 
might  furnish  the  materials  of  the  basic  and  sub- basic  eruptive  rocks  ;  while 
the  granitic  materials  constituting  the  floor  of  the  Eiarth's  crust  could  supply 
the  additional  potash  and  silica  required  for  the  formation  of  acid  and  sub-acid 
series  of  rocks. 

It  was  further  suggested  that  many  basalts,  and  most  gabbros,  were  of 
secondary  origin,  ana  that  their  present  structure  is  due  to  changes  which  have 
originated  within  the  core  of  a  volcano.  Some  basaltic  tuffs  had  thus  been 
softened  and  reconsolidated  as  pseudo-massive  rocks  ;  while  many  basalt  lavas, 
dykes  and  sills,  occurring  within  the  same  zone  of  reconstruction,  api>ear,  in 
like  manner,  to  have  been  softened  and  then  recrystallised  into  gabbro.  Most 
granophyric  granites  associated  with  gabbros  may  represent  such  changes 
carried  further  still,  and  may  be  due  to  the  solvent  action  of  a  granite  magma 
upon  an  older  set  of  basic  rocks  (see  fig.  27  above). 

The  bearing  of  these  considerations  upon  various  other  metamorphic  pro- 
cesses connected  with  the  origin  of  gneisses  and  rocks  allied  thereto,  was 
discussed  in  some  detail. 

(Issued  separately^  Miuj  20,  1904.) 


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1903-4.]  Note  on  the  Standard  of  Relative  Viscosity,  etc.        227 


Note  on  the  Standard  of  Relative  Viscosity,  and  on 
"  Negative  Viscosity."  By  W.  W.  Taylor,  M.A.,  D.Sc. 
Communicated  by  Professor  Crum  Brown. 

(Read  March  21,  1904.) 

The  Unit  of  Rblativb  Viscosity. 
The  absolute  viscosity  calculated  from  the  formula 

wprH 

(where  jp  =  the  pressure,  t  the  time,  r  the  radius,  I  the  length  of 
capillary,  and  v  the  volume  of  liquid),  which  connects  the  viscosity 
of  a  liquid  with  the  rate  of  flow  through  a  long  capillary  tube,  is  not 
often  made  use  of,  mainly  on  account  of  the  difficulty  of  accurately 
determining  some  of  the  constants  (r  in  particular).  Further,  a 
correction  has  to  be  made  if  the  velocity  of  outflow  is  not  sufficiently 
©low.*  For  most  purposes  the  viscosity  is  referred  to  that  of  a 
given  liquid  as  standard,  and  is  calculated  from  the  formula 

8t 

where  t/q,  Sq,  t^,  are  the  viscosity,  density,  and  time  of  flow  through 
a  tube  of  a  given  volume  of  the  standard  liquid,  and  -q,  s,  t  are  the 
corresponding  data  for  the  other  liquid.  Of  t/^,  Ostwald-Luther 
{Phys,  Chem,  Mesmngen,  p.  260)  say,  "  the  viscosity  of  water  at  0°  C. 
(or  at  the  temperature  of  experiment)  is  put=  1." 

It  is  the  general  practice  to  take  the  viscosity  of  the  solvent 
(whether  water  or  other  liquid)  at  the  temperature  of  experiment 
as  ly^j  =  1 .  In  place  of  this,  it  would  be  an  advantage  if  the 
viscosity  of  w^ater  at  0*  C.  were  taken  as  standard,  and  the  relative 
viscosity  of  liquids  and  solutions  referred  to  this  alone. 

For  certain  purposes,  e.g.  demonstration  of  the  additive 
character  of  the  viscosity  of  salt  solutions,  the  relation  between 
viscosity  and  atomic  weight,  or  between  viscosity  and  concentra- 
*  Cf.  Ostwald-Luther,  Fhys.  Chem,  Messungen,  p.  369. 


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228  Froceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh,  [sbs«. 

tion,  where  all  the  experiments  are  made  at  one  temperature,  the 
general  practice  is  not  inconvenient,  but  it  has  several  disadvan- 
tages:— 

1.  It  is  possible,  and  maybe  desirable,  to  determine  the  viscosity 
of  a  solution  at  temperatures  below  the  freezing-point  or  above  the 
boiling-point  of  the  solvent ;  in  this  case  *q,  t^  cannot  be  deter- 
mined. 

2.  It  affords  no  good  way  of  graphically  representing  the 
relation  between  viscosity  and  temperature. 

3.  It  may  lead  to  misunderstanding.  Most  of  the  experiments 
on  solutions  have  been  made  at  17*  or  25**  C,  and  a  comparison 
of  the  relative  viscosity  of,  €,g,,  1  n  KCl  is  as  follows : — 

Temp.  Temp. 

15*  25** 

Water  1  1 

1  n  KCl  0-972  1-001 

Water  0-640  0  501  I  .      .^^   .  ^.     , v. 

In  KCl  0-622  ^.^^^ }  (^^^eratO  =1), 

from  which  it  appears  that  the  relative  viscosity  of  the  solution  ii>- 
creases  with  increase  of  temperature.  In  this  connection  it  may  be 
remarked  that  Euler,*  referring  to  the  influence  of  temperature,, 
says, — "whilst  the  specific  viscosity  of  all  solutions  of  non- 
electrolytes  decreases  with  rise  of  temperature,  the  solutions  of 
strongly-dissociated  electrolytes  are  affected  in  the  opposite 
direction."  Without  a  definition  of  "specific"  viscosity  this 
statement  might  be  misunderstood. 

If  the  viscosities  are  referred  to  water  at  0"  as  unit,  it  is  seea 
that  they  do  not  increase  with  rise  of  temperature,  but  that  they 
do  not  diminish  so  rapidly  as  the  solvent;  in  other  words,  the 
temperature  coefficient  of  the  solution  is  smaller  than  that  of  the 
solvent,  but  is  of  the  same  sign.  Of  course,  there  may  still  be 
a  fundamental  difference  between  the  two  classes  of  solutions. 

As  to  the  unit,  no  maximum  of  viscosity  for  water  is  known 
(as  there  is  of  density  at +  4°  C),  and  there  is  not  much  to  choose 
between  water  at  0'  and  -I-  4" ;  in  either  case,  Sq  can  be  put  =  1 
without  appreciable  error  in  77,  which  is  ordinarily  not  more 
accurate  than  one  in  500  or  600. 

•  ZeU.f,  Phys,  CJicm.,  25,  p.  536  (1898>. 


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1903-4.]  Note  on  the  Standard  of  Relative  Viscosity,  etc,       229 

There  is  no  need  to  determine  t^  directly ;  the  simplest  way  is 
to  determine  t  for  the  solvent  at  the  temperature  of  experiment, 
and  to  calculate  t^  from  it  by  means  of  the  table  of  viscosity  of 
water  at  various  temperatures. 


"  Nbgatutb  Viscosity." 

The  bearing  of  this  on  "  negative  viscosity  "  (a  term  frequently 
used  to  denote  that  the  viscosity  of  the  solution  is  less  than  that 
of  the  solvent  at  the  same  temperature)  is  indicated  below. 

In  general,  the  temperature  coefficient  of  the  solution  will  be 
(a)  less  or  {h)  greater  than  that  of  the  solvent. 

(a)  If  at  a  given  temperature  the  viscosity  of  the  solution  is 
greater  than  that  of  the  solvent,  and  its  temperature  coefficient  is 
smaller  than  that  of  the  solvent,  at  higher  temperatures  the 
viscosity-temperature  curves  will  diverge,  but  at  lower  tempera- 
tures they  will  approach,  and  finally  intersect  at  some  temperature, 
below  which  "transition  temperature"  the  solution  will  exhibit 
"negative  viscosity." 

(b)  If,  on  the  other  hand,  the  temperature  coefficient  of  the 
solution  be  greater  than  that  of  the  solvent,  the  curves  will 
diverge  on  lowering  the  temperature,  whilst  they  will  approach 
and  intersect  on  raising  the  temperature.  In  this  case  the 
solution  will  exhibit  "  negative  viscosity  "  at  higher  temperatures. 

The  particular  case  where  the  solution  and  solvent  have  the 
same  temperature  coefficient  needs  no  discussion. 

Aqueous  solutions  of  electrolytes  appear  to  belong  to  group  (a), 
and  in  some  cases,  at  any  rate,  a  solution  has  "  positive  viscosity  " 
at  one  temperature  and  "  negative  viscosity  "  at  lower  temperatures, 
e,g,  KCl,  KNOg,*  etc. 

Until  quite  recently  no  solutions  other  than  aqueous  solutions 
of  electrolytes  were  known  to  exhibit  "negative  viscosity,"  and 
on  this  Eulert  based  his  explanation, — "the  electric  charge  of  the 
ion  causes  a  compression  (electro- stricti on)  of  the  water,  on 
account  of  which  the  viscosity  is  diminished."     But  Miihlenbein,  | 

•  Sprang,  Pogg,  Ann.,  169,  p.  20  (1876).  t  Loc.  cit,,  p.  541. 

t  Diissertation,  Leipzig,  1901.  Also  Wagner,  Zeit,  /.  Phys,  Chem.,  46, 
p.  872  (1908). 


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230  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh.         [siss. 

a  pupil  of  Wagner,  has  found  that  some  organic  substances  in 
organic  solvents  do  also  exhibit  it,  e.g.  cyanobenzol  in  ethyl  alcohoL 
In  the  known  cases  of  group  (a),  increase  of  concentration 
raises  the  transition  temperature :  there  is  very  little  to  show  in 
what  way  concentration  affects  the  transition  temperature  of 
solutions  in  class  (b),  whether  decrease  of  concentration  will 
lower  it  or  not,  but  measurements  by  Rudorf  *  on  aqueous  solutions 
of  carbamide  indicate  that  at  25°  C.  the  relative  viscosity  decreases 
with  dilution,  and  even  becomes  "  negative,"  e.g, — 


CoDcentntioD. 

q(  Water  at  25*=]). 

0-937n 

I^OIO 

•469 

roo2 

•234 

0996 

•117 

•993 

•058 

•995 

— but  the  viscosity  is  so  nearly  the  same  as  that  of  water  that  it  is 
not  safe  to  base  any  conclusions  on  these  data. 

Increase  of  molecular  weight,  in  the  known  cases  of  class  (a), 
raises  the  transition  temperature,  and  this  affords  another  means 
of  bringing  it  within  the  range  of  experiment. 

The  general  case,  where  the  viscosity  curves  of  solution  and 
solvent  intersect  twice,  is  of  some  interest.  According  as  the  one 
curve  or  the  other  represents  the  solution,  there  will  be  a  transition 
from  "positive"  to  "negative"  viscosity,  or  vice  versct,  at  both 
high  and  at  low  temperatures.  It  may  not  be  possible  to  realise 
this  case,  except  perhaps  with  a  very  soluble  substance,  and  a 
solvent  which  permits  of  a  wide  range  of  temperature,  but  there 
should  not  be  much  difficulty  in  realising  the  particular  case  of  it 
where  at  one  extreme  of  temperature  and  concentration  the  one 
part  of  the  curve  is  obtained,  and  the  other  part  at  the  other 
extreme. 

I  hope  to  commence  experiments,  in  the  near  future,  with  a 
view  to  verifying  these  conclusions. 

*  Zeit.  /.  Phys.  Chem.,  43,  p.  257  (1908). 


{Issued  separately  June  16,  1904.) 


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1903—4.]  The  Viscosity  of  Aqueous  Solutions  oj  Chloi-ides,  etc.  231 


The  Viscosity  of  Aqueous  Solutions  of  Chlorides, 
Bromides,  and  Iodides.  By  W.  W.  Taylor,  M.A.,  D.Sc, 
and  Clerk  Banken,  B.Sc.  CommuTiicated  by  Professor 
Crum  Brown. 

(Read  March  21,  1904.) 

In  a  recent  investigation  on  the  aluminium  anode,  by  one  of  us, 
in  conjunction  with  Inglis,*  a  striking  difference  was  found 
between  chloride  and  bromide  during  some  preliminary  experiments 
on  the  rate  of  solution  of  aluminium  in  sulphuric  acid :  — 
addition  of  a  small  quantity  of  potassium  chloride  to  the  sulphuric 
acid  greatly  increased  the  rate  of  evolution  of  hydrogen,  but 
addition  of  an  equivalent  quantity  of  potassium  bromide^  under 
the  same  conditions,  appeared  to  have  no  effect  at  all.  Subsequent 
investigation,  not  yet  completed,  has  shown  that,  under  similar 
conditions  and  with  solutions  of  pure  hydrochloric  acid  and 
hydrobromic  acid  which  are  isohydric  (have  the  same  concentration 
of  H*),  the  rate  of  evolution  of  hydrogen  from  hydrochloric  acid  is 
about  thirty  times  as  great  as  from  hydrobromic  acid.  No  experi- 
ments have  yet  been  made  with  hydriodic  acid. 

Such  marked  differences  between  chloride  and  bromide  are  by 
no  means  common ;  so  far  as  we  are  aware,  the  only  one  previously 
recorded  is  by  Ostwald,t  that  chloride,  bromide,  and  iodide  have 
very  different  effect  on  the  periodic  dissolution  of  chromium  in 
acids.  Another  interesting  instance  has  since  been  found  by  Elbs 
and  NUbling  J — that  with  a  lead  anode  aijd  hydrochloric  acid  as 
electrolyte,  a  compound  of  quadrivalent  lead  is  formed ;  but  that 
when  hydrobromic  acid  or  hydriodic  acid  is  the  electrolyte,  no 
similar  compound  is  formed.  It  is  a  curious  circumstance  that  in 
each  of  these  cases  the  reaction  is  one  which  takes  place  at  the 

♦  Phil  Mag,  (6),  6,  p.  312  (1903). 

\ZeU.fiir  Phys.  Chem.,  35,  pp.  33,  204  (1900) ;  38,  p.  441  (1901). 

t  ZaU,  fur  Elektrochemie,  ix.  p.  776  (1903). 


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232  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh.  [= 

surface  of  a  metal  in  contact  with  a  solution.  In  the  paper  on 
the  Aluminium  Anode  {loc.  o^.)  it  is  suggested  that  the  permeability 
of  the  surface  film  of  aluminium  hydroxide  by  CI'  and  imperme- 
ability by  SO^ "  is  the  cause  of  the  differences  observed  between 
hydrochloric  acid  and  sulphuric  acid ;  and  if  this  be  so,  differ- 
ences of  permeability  by  CI',  Br',  and  I'  are  to  be  expected. 

As  it  seemed  probable  that  similar  differences  might  manifest 
themselves  in  other  physical  properties,  we  decided  to  determine 
the  relative  viscosity  of  solutions  of  chloride,  bromide,  and  iodide 
under  various  conditions  of  temperature  and  concentration.  The 
viscosity  of  solutions  of  potassium  chloride  has  been  determined 
many  times  at  one  temperature  (17**  or  25'  C.)  and  one  concen- 
tration (usually  1  n).  Sprung*  determined  the  viscosity  of 
potassium  chloride,  bromide,  and  iodide  over  a  considerable  range 
of  temperature  (5**  C.  to  50*  C),  but  at  only  two  concentrations  of 
chloride,  and  the  other  solutions  were  not  at  comparable  concen- 
trations. Wagner  t  also  made  determinations  of  viscosity  of 
hydrochloric  acid  at  various  concentrations  and  temperatures. 
Their  results  are  referred  to  later  on. 

£XPBRIMBNTAL. 

•  The  potassium  chloride  and  bromide  were  purified  by  repeated 
precipitation  from  hot  aqueous  solution  by  addition  of  ethyl 
alcohol ;  the  iodide  was  twice  recrystallised  from  water.  The 
hydrobromic  acid  was  made  by  the  direct  union  of  hydrogen  and 
bromine  in  contact  with  hot  platinised  tile,  the  gas  absorbed  in 
water,  and  the  solution  redistiUed ;  no  rubber  or  cork  joints  were 
used  in  the  apparatus,  so  that  the  bromine  and  acid  never  came  in 
contact  with  organic  matter.  The  most  concentrated  solutions  of 
the  salts  were  made  up  by  weight,  and  the  others  were  prepared 
from  them  by  dilution ;  the  concentration  of  each  solution  was 
further  checked  by  titration  with  silver  nitrate.  The  concen- 
trations of  the  acid  solutions  were  ascertained  by  titration  with 
barium  hydroxide  solution. 

The  densities  were  determined  by  means  of  an  Ostwald-Sprengel 
pyknometer.     The  viscosity  apparatus  used  is  the   form    figured 

•  Pogg,  Ann.,  159,  p.  1  (1876).  t  ^"ied.  Ann,,  18,  p.  259  (1883). 


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1908-4.]  The  Viscosity  ofAqueom  Solutions  of  Chlorides,  etc.  233 

and  described  in  Ostwald-Luther  {Phys.  Ghent.  Messungen^ 
p.  260).  In  every  experiment  the  time  of  flow  was  observed 
six  or  seven  times  and  the  mean  of  all  the  readings  taken ;  also, 
in  many  cases  duplicate  determinations  were  made,  but  no 
difference  in  the  mean  result  was  obtained  except  at  0**  C,  where 
a  difference  of  0' 1-0*2  sec.  in  150  sec.  were  obtained;  the  times 
were  measured  by  means  of  a  stop-watch,  giving  0-2  sec. 

In  every  case  the  viscosity  of  the  solution  is  referred  to  the 
viscosity  of  water  at  0*  C.  as  unit  =  1 ;  for  convenience  of  com- 
parison, the  viscosity  of  water  at  the  temperature  of  experiment  is 
added.  The  temperature  at  15°  and  25*  did  not  vary  0-1*,  but 
the  low  temperature  varied  between  0*1*  and  0-15*,  and  the  data 
are  corrected  to  0**  C.  We  made  determinations  of  the  relative 
viscosity  of  water  with  each  of  the  three  tubes  used  in  the  other 
experiments,  and  the  results  given  below  are  the  means  of  all  the 
five  values  obtained  at  each  temperature  : — 


0*  C.     1000 

15°    0-6395 

25°     0-601 

1-000 

0-638 

0-501  (Thorpe  and 
Rodger).* 

1000 

0-637 

0-500  {Ho»Ung)A 

Table  I. — Potassium  Chloride, 


Temp. 

Mol.  per 
litre. 

1 
Density.            Viscosity. 

Viscosity  of 
Water. 

0- 

1 
2 
3 

1-0480 
1-0935 
1-1371 

0-931 
-886 
-880 

1-000 

15" 

1 
2 
8 

1-0455 
1-0901 
1-1333 

•622 
•615 
•625 

•502 
•507 
-517 

0-640 

26- 

1 
2 
3 

1^0488 
V0877 
M295 

0-501 

i 

•  Phil.  Tram.,  185,  p.  397  (1894). 
t  Phil  Mag.  (5),  49,  p.  274  (1900). 


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•234  Proceedhigs  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh,  [a 


Table  II. — Potassium  Bromide. 


Temp. 

Mol.  per 
litre. 

Density. 

1-0858 
11692 
1-2521 

Viscosity. 

Viscosity  of 
Water. 

- 

O** 

3 

0-911 
-837 
•815 

1-000 

16» 

1  10831 

2  11662 

3  1-2453 

•601 
•685 
•582 

0-640 

25'' 

1 
2 
3 

1-0S04 
1-1623 
1-2413 

•483 
•477 
•486 

0-501 

Table  III. — Potassium  Iodide. 


Temp. 

Mol.  \^eT 
litre. 

0' 

3 

15'' 

1 
2 
3 

25* 

1 

1    s 

I  1^1212 

r2415 

'         1^8621 


1^1188 
1^2365 
1^3552 


1-1159 
12823 
r3499 


Viscosity. 


0-854 
•778 
•748 


•583 
•552 
•544 


•467 
•458 
•459 


Viscosity  of 
Water. 


1000 


0*640 


0-601 


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1908-4.]  The  Viscosity  of  Aquemis  Solutions  of  Chlorides,  etc.  235 
Table  IV. — Hydrochloric  Acid. 


m,^^            MoL  per 

Density. 

Viscosity. 

1-020 
1-041 
1-069 

Viscosity  of 
Water. 

0* 

1 
2 
3 

1-0160 
1-0327 
1-0489 

1-000 

16 

1 
2 
3 

1-0144 
10808 
1-0454 

0-667 
•695 
-725 

•529 
•557 
-585 

0-640 

26- 

1 
2 
3 

1-0123 
1-0278 
1-0426 

0-501 

Table  V. — Hydrobromic  Acid, 


T*«»«       I     Mol.  per 
^'"P-  litre. 


Density. 


Viscosity. 


Viscosity  of 
Water. 


0  987 

1-000 

•970 

•962 

-650 

0-640 

-657 

-671 

-514 

0-501 

-529 

•544 

Kesults. 

In  the  first  place,  it  may  be  pointed  out  that  the  value  we  have 
obtained  for  1  n  KCl  solution  at  25'  is  slightly  greater  than  the 
viscosity  of  water  at  that  temperature,  whereas  it  is  generally 
stated  to  be  less  than  water;  the  value  for  17-6*  C.  (interpolated 
between  15**  and  25*)  agrees  extremely  well  with  that  given  by 
Arrhenius.     A  certain  amount  of  confusion  has  arisen  regarding 


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236  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh.  [sbss. 

various  determinations  of  these  data :  e,g,  Rudorf  *  gives  a  table 
comparing  the  data  for  various  salt  solutions  by  Abegg,t 
Arrhenius,  J  and  Reyher,  §  stated  to  be  for  25' ;  whereas  Reyher's 
alone  are  for  that  temperature,  those  of  Arrhenius  were  for 
17*6'  C,  and  those  of  Abegg  apparently  for  15'  or  16'.  It  is  not 
surprising  that  the  data  do  not  show  good  agreement. 

H- 


W- 


0»  5»  10*  15*  2Xf  25* 

Fio.  1.— Concentration  of  solutions  1  mol.  per  litre. 

The  results  contained  in  the  above  tables  show  that  there  is  a 
considerable  difference  between  chloride,  bromide,  and  iodide,  not 
only  at  any  one  temperature  and  concentration,  but  especially 
in  the  effect  of  variation  of  temperature  and  concentration  on 
the  viscosity.  The  experiments  have,  unfortunately,  not  been 
extended  over  a  sufficient  range  of  temperature  and  concentration 

♦  ZeU,f,  Phys.  Chcm.,  43,  p.  257  (1903).  +  Ibid.,  11,  p.  248  (1893). 

X  Ibid.,  1,  p.  296  (1887).  §  Ibid.,  2,  p.  744  (1888). 


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1903-4.]  The  Viscosity  of  Aqueous  Solutions  of  Chlorides,  etc,  237 

to  warrant  general  concluBions,  but  some  points  worthy  of  notice 
may  be  referred  to. 

The  Effect  of  Temperature, — In  every  case  the  viscosity  decreases 
with  increase  of  temperature,  but  at  diflferent  rates  for  the  three 
salts,  the  rate  for  chloride  being  greatest  and  iodide  the  smallest. 


H- 


H)- 


•9 


•5- 


-L 


(f  S"  10*  15*  20"  25* 

Fio.  2.— Concentration  of  solutions  2  mols.  per  litre. 

It  will  be  noticed,  too,  that  a  solution  can  at  one  temperature 
exhibit  "negative  viscosity/'*  and  "positive"  viscosity  at 
another ;  e.g.  potassium  chloride  at  each  of  the  three  concentrations 
is  "positive "at  25'  C.  and  "negative"  at  15°  C,  while  all  the 

*  The  term  "  negative  viscosity  '*  has  been  frequently  employed  to  express 
the  fact  that  the  viscosity  of  the  eolation  is  less  than  that  of  the  pnre  solvent 
at  the  same  temperature. 


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238  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh. 


[SBSS. 

and 


solutions  of  hydrobromic   acid  are   "positive"   at    15'    C. 
"  negative  "  at  0"  C.  {cf.  figs.  1,  2,  3). 

Another  effect  of  temperature  is  well  seen  in  fig.  4,  in  which, 
for  the  purpose  of  comparison,  the  viscosity  of  water  at  each 
temperature  is  shown  by  a  thick  black  line.  At  0°  hydrochloric 
acid  alone  has  viscosity  greater  than  that  of  water  at  all  con- 
centrations, at  15°  the  viscositj'  of  hydrochloric  acid  and  hydro- 

II  - 


1-0 


•8- 


•4 


0**  5'  l(r  15*  2(r  25* 

Fio.  3.— Concentration  of  solutions  3  mols.  per  litre. 

bromic  acid  is  greater  than  that  of  water,  while  at  25"  potassium 
bromide  and  iodide  still  have  viscosity  smaller  than  that  of 
water,  but  the  one  normal  solution  of  potassium  chloride  has 
practically  the  same  viscosity  as  water,  though  at  all  three  con- 
centrations it  is  greater  than  that  of  water.  Sprung  (Zoc  cit.) 
has  shown  that  at  higher  temperatures  the  viscosity  of  the 
concentrated  solutions  becomes  greater  than  that  of  water. 


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1903-4.]  The  Viscosity  of  Aqueom  SoltUiona  of  Chlo7^e$,  etc.  239 


IJffect  of  Concentration. — The  eflfect  of  concentration  on  the 
viscosity  depends  very  much  on  the  temperature,  as  is  seen  in  fig  4. 
The  viscosity  of  hydrochloric  acid  increases  with  increase  of  con- 
centration at  all  three  temperatures ;  this  is  in  accord  with 
Wagner's  results  {loc.  cit.). 

Increase  of  concentration  increases  the  viscosity  of  hydrobromic 
acid  at  25°  and  15*,  but  decreases  it  at  0°  C.     In  the  case  of  the 


•8 


(T 


15* 


25** 


-L 


Concttntration         Im.  2  m.  3m. 

Fig.  4.  —Eflfect  of  concentration  at  different  temperatures. 

salts  the  viscosity  decreases  at  0**  with  increase  of  concentration, 
at  15"*  bromide  and  iodide  still  decrease,  while  chloride  passes 
through  a  minimum  ;  and  at  25°  chloride  increases,  while  bromide 
and  iodide  pass  through  a  minimum.  This  is  in  agreement  with 
Sprung's  *  conclusions,  qualitatively  at  least,  as  will  be  seen  by  com- 

*  Loc.  dt. 


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240  ProcetdiTiys  of  Royai  Society  of  Edinburgh,  [ssss. 

parison  of  his  curves ;  *  it  is  plain,  however,  that  experiments  over 
a  much  wider  range  of  concentration  are  required  before  any 
satisfactory  conclusions  can  be  reached. 

Electric  Conductivity  at  0*  C. 

The  equivalent  conductivities  of  dilute  solutions  of  chloride, 
bromide,  iodide  of  a  metal  are  practically  the  same  at  18'  C,  though 
concentrated  solutions  do  show  small  differences.  In  order  to  see 
if  greater  differences  exist  at  a  lower  temperature,  we  have  deter- 
mined the  conductivity  of  all  the  solutions  employed  in  the 
viscosity  experiments  at  0°  C.  The  method  was  the  usual 
Kohlrausch  alternating  current  method,  with  bridge  and  telephone. 
The  results  are  corrected  for  the  slight  variations  in  temperature, 
and  the  cell  constant  was  determined  by  means  of  the  value  at  0**  C. 
of  1  n  KCl,  as  given  in  Kohlrausch  {Leitverjndgen,  p.  204). 

Whethamt  has  recently  determined  the  conductivity  of  a 
number  of  solutions  at  0'  C,  potassium  chloride  being  one  of  them  : 
for  1  n  KCl  (r2  n  was  the  most  concentrated  solution  employed) 
he  found  A  =  69*0.  There  is  also  in  Kohlrausch  {Leitvermdgen^  p. 
199)  a  table  of  temperature  coefficients  of  conductivity  for  dUute 
solutions  of  HCl,  KCl,  KI,  as  determined  by  Deguisne. 


Table  VI. 

Mol.  per  litre. 

Eqairalent  conductivity. 

KCl 

1 

65-4 

2 

631 

3 

62-4 

KBr 

1 

68-3 

2 

67-6 

3 

65-8 

KI 

1 

700 

2 

69-5 

3 

68-0 

HCl 

1 

187-0 

2 

165-7 

3 

143-5 

HBr 

1 

203-0 

2 

175-0 

3 

148-3 

*  These  are  viscosity-percentage  concenti-ation  curves,  and  are  not  compar- 
able, as  are  viscosity -molecular  concentration  curves, 
t  Proc.  Roy,  Soc,  71,  p.  332  (1903). 


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1 90  ;-4.]  The  Viscosity  of  Aqueoiis  Solutions  of  Chlorides,  etc.  241 

The  differences  between  the  conductivity  at  0'  C.  of  equivalent 
solutions  of  KCl,  KBr,  and  KI  are  very  similar  to  the  differences 
at  18"  C.  (cf.  Kohlrausch, — Leitvermogen), 

An  explanation  of  the  equal  mobility  of  CI',  Br',  and  I'  has 
been  ^suggested — that  molecules  of  the  solvent  may  be  associated 
^ith  an  ion ;  that  the  number  of  molecules  associated  depends 
on  the  electro-affinity  of  the  ions  ;  and  in  this  case  the  difference 
in  number  of  molecules  associated  with  CI',  Br',  and  I'  causes  the 
mobilities  to  be  the  same.  The  formation  of  complexes  is  also 
referred  to  the  electro-affinity  of  the  element.*  Some  influence  of 
this  might  be  expected  in  the  viscosities  of  the  solutions ;  but 
whether  the  differences  observed,  especially  with  variation  of 
temperature,  are  to  be  connected  with  this,  it  is  not  possible  to  say ; 
we  have  worked  with  concentrated  solutions  only,  and  possibly 
dilute  solutions  would  be  better  for  this  purpose. 

Summary. 

1.  We  have  determined  the  relative  viscosity  of  aqueous  solu- 
tions of  KCl,  KBr,  KI,  HCl,  HBr  at  0',  15',  and  25'  C. ;  and  at 
concentrations  of  1  mol.,  2  mol.,  and  3  mol.  per  litre.  Also  the 
equivalent  conductivity  of  the  same  solutions  at  0"  C. 

2.  The  change  of  viscosity  with  change  of  temperature  dimin- 
ishes from  Cl-Br-I. 

3.  The  effect  of  concentration  on  the  viscosity  depends  on  the 
temperature :  it  may  affect  the  viscosity  in  opposite  directions  at 
different  temperatures. 

4.  There  are  considerable  differences  in  viscosity  of  chloride, 
bromide,  and  iodide,  and  especially  in  the  effect  of  changes  in  con- 
centration and  temperature. 

•  Cf.  Abegg  and  Bodlander,  2eil,/.  anvrg.  chem.y  20,  p.  468  (1899),  and 
Baur,  AhrerCi  Sammlung  chem.  u.  chem,  teeh.^  Vortrage  viii.  No  12  (1903). 


{Issued  separately  June  16,  1904.) 


PROC.  ROY.  SOC.  EDIN. — VOL.  XXV.  16 


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242  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh,  [ 


On  the  Date  of  the  Upheaval  which  caused  the  25.feet 
Raised  Beaches  in  Central  Scotland.  By  Robert 
Munro,  M.A.,  M.D.,  LL.D. 

(MS.  received  March  28,  1904.     Read  May  2,  1904.) 

About  forty-two  years  ago  Mr  Archibald  Greikie  (now  Sir 
Archibald),  then  an  energetic  member  on  the  staff  of  the  Geolo- 
gical Survey,  propounded  and  advocated  the  doctrine  that  the 
change  in  the  relative  level  of  sea  and  land,  indicated  by  the  25- 
feet  raised  beaches  which  have  been  long  known  to  geologists  as 
fringing  the  winding  shores  of  the  firths  of  Central  Scotland,  took 
place  subsequent  to  the  occupation  of  the  district  by  the  Bomans. 
Further  researches,  together  with  a  more  careful  examination  of 
the  archaeological  phenomena  on  which  Sir  Archibald  mainly  relied 
as  evidence,  convinced  later  observers  that  the  facts  did  not  justify 
this  conclusion.  Hence  for  some  years  I  have  been  under  the 
impression  that  the  post-Roman  theory  was  abandoned,  not  only 
by  the  general  body  of  geologists  and  archaeologists,  but,  as  I 
understood,  by  the  author  himself.  The  following  statement  of 
opinion  on  the  subject,*  recently  urged  in  the  interests  of  the 
Trustees  of  the  British  Museum  by  a  distinguished  Professor  of 
Greology,  and  one  who  has  had  exceptional  opportunities  of  making 
himself  conversant  with  all  the  factors  of  the  problem,  will,  how- 
ever, show  how  wide  of  the  truth  that  impression  must  have  been. 
Professor  Edward  Hull,  F.R.S.,  said  "  that  he  was  formerly  Director 
of  the  Geological  Survey  of  Ireland.  The  spot  where  the  articles 
were  found  was  part  of  what  was  known  to  geologists  as  a  raised 
beach.  The  raised  beach  extended  all  along  the  north  coast  of 
Ireland,  and  down  the  east  coast  as  far  as  Wicklow.  In  the  north 
it  was  about  15  feet  high,  but  towards  the  south  its  height  was 
only  about  4  ft.     Its  general  character  was,  that  it  was  a  nearly 

*  Evidence  given  in  the  recent  case  of  the  Attorney-General  v.  The  Trustees 
of  the  British  Museum  with  regard  to  the  remarkable  hoard  of  gold  ornaments 
found  near  Lough  Foyle,  Ireland.    {Times  Law  Reports^  June  13,  1903.) 


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1903-4.]  Date  of  Upheaved  of  Raised  Beaches  in  Scotland,     243 

flat  terrace,  of  varying  width,  with  the  old  coast-line  on  the  inland 
side,  and  a  slope  down  to  the  sea  on  the  other  side.  A  similar 
formation  was  found  in  Scotland,  but  there  the  height  was 
generally  greater — about  25  feet.  The  Carse  of  Gowrie  was  an 
example.  In  the  raised  beach  in  the  north  of  Ireland  were  found 
not  only  shells  of  the  present  period,  but  flint  arrow  heads  and 
other  articles  made  of  flint.  In  Scotland  there  was  stronger 
evidence  of  the  date  of  formation.  There  had  been  found  skeletons 
of  whales,  and  canoes,  some  hollowed  out  of  single  trunks,  but 
others  clinker-built  of  sawn  planks,  with  holes  for  riveting.  Iron 
anchors  and  boat-hooks  had  also  been  found  in  the  raised  beach 
in  Scotland.  The  raised  beaches  in  Ireland  and  Scotland  were  a 
simultaneous  formation,  in  his  opinion.  The  iron  implements  were 
important  in  fixing  the  date.  He  should  say  that  the  beaches 
began  to  be  formed  about  the  fourth  century  a-d.     His  opinion 

was  founded  upon  all  the  sources  of  information  available 

It  was  a  disputed  question  when  the  sea  retired  from  these  beaches. 
The  flint  implements  dated  from  the  Celtic  era,  which  might  be 
from  the  second  century  b.c.  to  the  second  century  a.d." 

Differing  from  Professor  Hull  with  regard  to  some  of  the  items 
in  the  above  statement,  more  especially  that  the  finding  of  cetaceous 
remains,  canoes,  iron  anchors,  etc.,  entitles  him  to  fix  the  date  of 
the  upheaval  to  so  recent  an  epoch  as  the  fourth  century  a.d.,  I 
propose  in  this  paper  to  reopen  the  former  discussion  on  the  sub- 
ject, though  to  many  it  may  seem  to  be  slaying  a  dead  animal. 
For  this  purpose  it  is  necessary  to  go  back  to  the  early  sixties  of 
last  century,  when  the  post- Roman  theory  was  first  promulgated  by 
Sir  Archibald  Geikie,  whose  researches  were  evidently  the  fans  et 
xrrifjo  malt  of  the  Professor's  statements. 

In  his  first  published  essay  on  the  subject  {Edinburtjh  New  Phil. 
Journal^  vol.  xiv.,  1861)  Sir  Archibald  restricted  the  field  of  his 
researches  to  the  Firth  of  Forth.  The  principal  evidence  then 
adduced  was  the  discovery  by  himself  and  Dr  Young  of  small 
pieces  of  two  kinds  of  pottery  "  in  a  regularly  stratified  deposit " 
in  the  lower  reaches  of  the  Water  of  Leith,  which  they  considered 
to  be  of  Roman  origin.  In  support  of  the  validity  of  this  argu- 
ment he  writes :  "  Since  the  examination  of  the  sand-pit  at 
X.eith  I  have  visited  all  the   localities   along  the   shore   where 


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244  Proceedings  of  Boycd  Society  of  Edinburgh,  [i 

Roman  remains  are  known  to  have  existed,  and  I  have  found  no 
authentic  evidence  that  in  any  way  militates  against  the  recent 
elevation  of  the  land,  but,  on  the  contrary,  several  facts  that  tend 
to  confirm  it."  {Ibid.,  p.  107.)  At  Inveresk  and  Cramond  all  the 
Roman  remains  were,  so  far  as  he  could  discover,  60  or  70  feet 
above  present  high-water  mark.  He  ridicules  the  tradition  that 
some  old  carving  to  be  seen  on  the  Eagle  Rock,  near  Cramond, 
and  situated  only  a  little  above  present  high-water  mark,  was 
Roman  workmanship. 

^*  Antiquaries,''  he  writes,  ''  have  grown  eloquent  at  the  eight  of  this 
relic  of  the  creative  genius  of  the  old  legionaries,  but  the  carving  has 
really  about  as  much  claim  to  be  considered  Roman  as  the  famous  pne- 
torium  of  Jonathan  Oldbuck.  In  a  niche  of  the  soft  sandstone  crag  stands 
a  rude  figure,  as  like  that  of  a  hmnan  being  as  of  an  eagle,  with  a  very 
short  stump  by  way  of  legs,  surmounted  by  a  long  and  not  very  sym- 
metrical body,  on  one  side  of  which  an  appendage  that  may  be  an  arm 
hangs  stifily  down,  while  the  corresponding  one  shoots  away  up  at  an 
uncomfortable  angle  on  the  other  side.  Like  other  carvings  on  the  shores 
of  the  Forth  (as  the  figure  near  Dysart  and  Queen  Margaret's  footstep  at 
South  Queensferry),  it  must  take  i-ank  among  the  handiworks  of  idle 
peasants  or  truant  schoolboys."    (/Wd,  p.  110.) 

By  way  of  strengthening  his  theory,  he  further  observed  that 
the  Roman  wall  commenced  at  the  Hill  of  Carriden ;  that,  accord- 
ing to  the  author  of  Caledonia  Roniana,  the  remains  of  the 
Roman  Portm  ad  Vallum  existed  (near  Camelon)  down  to  the 
last  century,  and  that  an  iron  anchor  was  dug  up  in  the  same 
locality.     These  statements  will  be  dealt  with  later  on. 

In  restricting  his  observations  to  the  valley  of  the  Forth,  the 
author  did  not  then  think  it  necessary  to  the  truth  of  the  con- 
clusions of  his  paper  **that  the  west  coast  of  Scotland — as,  for 
instance,  at  the  termination  of  the  Wall  of  Antonine — should  be 
proved  to  have  experienced  any  elevatory  movements  at  all.'* 
However,  in  the  following  year  he  recurred  to  the  subject  in  a 
more  comprehensive  communication  to  the  Geological  Society 
of  London  (Journal,  March  19,  1862),  entitled,  "On  the  Date 
of  the  Last  Elevation  in  Central  Scotland,"  from  which  it  will  be 
seen  that  he  no  longer  confined  himself  to  the  east  of  Scotland^ 
as  he  included  in  his  purview  the  Firth  of  Clyde,  and,  indeed^ 
*•  the  greater  part  of  the  British  Isles." 

Before  proceeding  to  discuss  the  scientific  value  of  the  evidence 


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1903-4.]  Date  of  Upheaval  of  Raised  Searches  in  Scotland.    245 

advanced  in  support  of  these  views,  it  is  desirable  to  start  with  a 

clear  idea  of  what  is  meant  by  a  *  raised  beach.'    In  reality,  the 

elevated  portion    includes    not  only  the   former  sea-margin,   or 

beach  proper,  but  also  wide  patches  of  sea-bottom  which,  in  course 

of  the  terrestrial  process  of  upheaval,  came  to  the  surface,  and 

have  remained  dry  land  since.     As  an  authoritative  description  of 

the  composition  and  general  appearance  of  these  beaches,  I  know 

nothing  better  than  that  which  Sir  Archibald  has  himself  put  on 

record— for  in  geological  matters  he  is  to  be  implicitly  trusted. 

It  is  only  when  weighing  archseological  facts  in  the  balance  of 

probability  that  he  becomes  vulnerable.     In  the  following  extract 

he  brings  both  p>arties  in  perfect  agreement  to  the  very  core  of 

the  controversy,   and  admirably   places   before   us   the   materials 

on  which  our  keenest  deductive  faculties  are   henceforth  to  be 

exercised ; — 

"  The  Firths  of  Clyde,  Forth,  and  Tay  are  each  bordered  with  a  strip 
of  flat  land,  varying  in  breadth  from  a  few  yards  to  several  miles,  and 
having  a  pretty  uniform  height  of  20  or  25  feet  above  high-^^'ater  mark. 
This  level  terrace  is  the  latest  and,  on  the  whole,  tlie  most  marked  of  the 
raised  beaches.  It  must  have  been  formed  when  the  land  was  from  20  to 
30  feet  lower  than  at  present,  and  evinces  an  upheaval  which  was  nearly 
uniform  over  the  whole  of  the  central  valley  of  Scotland.  What,  then, 
was  the  date  of  this  upheaval  ?  The  discovery  of  human  remains  in  the 
sands  and  clays  of  the  raised  beach  affords  the  only  ground  for  an 
answer  to  this  question.  From  these  strata  canoes,  stone  hatchets,  boat- 
hooks,  anchors,  pottery,  and  other  works  of  art  have  been  exhumed  on 
both  sides  of  the  island.'' 

Sir  Archibald  first  deals  with  the  Clyde  Canoes,  and,  at  the 
outset,  makes  some  judicious  observations  on  the  nature  of  the 
evidence  to  be  derived  from  their  study.  "  It  must  be  borne  in 
mind,"  he  writes,  "that  the  occurrence  of  these  canoes  in  the 
same  upraised  silt  by  no  means  proves  them  to  be  synchronous, 
nor  even  to  have  belonged  to  the  same  geological  period."  After 
discussing  the  various  degrees  of  technical  skill  displayed  in  their 
construction,  he  concludes  that  "the  only  evidence  that  remains 
is  that  which  may  be  afforded  by  the  character  of  the  antiquities." 
But  yet,  in  face  of  this  well-selected  and,  indeed,  unassailable 
position,  he  deliberately  pens  the  following  remarks  as  his  final 
opinion  on  the  evidential  value  of  the  Clyde  canoes  on  the 
upheaval  problem : — 


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246  Proceedivgs  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh.  [siss. 

**  It  is  plain  that  the  inlanders  who  buUt  this  primitive  fleet  were  not 
only  acquainted  with  the  iiae  of  metal,  but  that  before  they  could  have 
cut  out  the  more  highly-finished  canoes  they  must  have  been  long 
familiar  with  its  use.  They  must  have  had  serviceable  metal  tools 
wherewith  they  could  saw  an  oak  through  cleanly  and  sharply  at  its 
thicker  part,  make  thin  oaken  boards  and  planks,  and  plane  down  a 
large  tree  into  a  smoothly  cut  and  polished  canoe.  They  had  advanced, 
too,  to  a  high  d^ree  of  mechanical  ingenuity."  .  .  .  "Two  of  the 
canoes  were  built,  not  out  of  a  single  oak  stem,  but  of  planks.  That  of 
Bankton,  already  described,  had  its  deals  fastened  to  strong  ribs  like  a 
modem  boat ;  its  prow  was  turned  up  *  like  the  beak  of  an  antique 
galley,'  and  its  whole  build  suggests  that  the  islander  who  constructed  it 
may  have  taken  his  model,  not  from  the  vessels  of  his  countrymen,  but 
from  some  real  galley  that  had  come  from  a  foreign  country  to  his 
secluded  shores.  Nor  is  this  the  sole  ground  for  inferring  that,  at  least 
at  the  time  indicated  by  some  of  these  canoe«,  the  natives  of  the  west  of 
Scotland  had  some  communication  with  a  more  southern  and  civilised 
race  How  otherwise  are  we  to  account  for  the  plug  of  cork  ?  *  It  could 
only  have  come  from  the  latitudes  of  Spain,  Southern  France,  or  Italy. 
By  whom,  then,  was  it  brought  ?  Shall  I  venture  to  suggest  that  the  old 
Briton  who  used  it  was  not  so  ignorant  of  Roman  customs  as  antiquaries 
have  represented  him,  and  that  the  prototype  of  the  galley-like  war- 
boat  may  have  come  from  the  Tiber  to  the  Clyde?  But  whether 
such  a  suggestion  be  accepted  or  not,  it  is  abundantly  evident  that  the 
elevation  of  the  bed  of  the  estuary,  by  which  the  canoes  have  attained 
an  altitude  of  sometimes  22  feet  above  high-water  mark,  cannot  be 
assigned  to  the  rude  ages  of  the  Stone  period,  but  must  have  taken  place 
long  after  the  islanders  had  become  expert  in  the  use  of  metal  tools." 
(Journal^  p.  224.) 

The  above  sweeping  deduction,  with  which  he  brings  the  Clyde 
canoe-controversy  to  an  end  in  conformity  with  his  own  views,  is 
the  weakest  link  in  the  whole  chain  of  his  arguments,  as  there  is 
really  no  logical  connection  between  the  premises  and  the  con- 
clusion. Nor  does  it  require  much  critical  acumen  to  expose 
where  the  fallacy  comes  in.  Some  of  these  Clyde  canoes  have 
been  found  above,  at,  and  below  present  high-water  mark.  In 
discussing  the  chronological  problems  suggested  by  their  respec- 
tive positions,  it  must  be  borne  in  mind  that,  as  boats  may  be 
submerged  in  any  depth  and  afterwards  become  silted  up,  their 
final   positions  afiford   no  reliable   criterion   for  determining   the 

*  One  of  the  Springfield  group  had  n  hole  in  its  bottom  said  to  contain  a 
cork  plug.  The  Clyde  canoes  were  found  at  au  average  depth  of  19  feet 
beneath  the  surface  of  the  ground,  and  about  100  yards  back  from  the 
original  edge  of  the  Clyde,  chiefly  in  a  thick  bed  of  finely-laminated  sand. 
(Smith's  JV<fu?cr  Pliocene  Geology,  p.  163.) 


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1903-4.]    Date  of  Upheaval  of  liaised  Beaches  in  Scotland.    247 

relative  level  of  sea  and  land  at  that  time.  It  is  only  when  they 
are  found  in  marine  stratified  beds  above  high-water  mark  that 
their  final  positions  can  have  any  bearing  on  this  point.  Mr 
Robert  Chambers  (Ancient  Sea  Martjins^  p.  206)  describes  the 
situation  of  the  boats  found  under  the  Tontine  and  Trades'  Lands 
as  twenty-one  or  twenty-two  feet  above  high- water  in  the  river, 
but  this  is  the  only  instance  in  which  such  a  height  has  been 
recorded.  The  canoe  containing  a  stone  celt,  found  under  St 
Enoch's  Church,  lay  at  a  depth  of  25  feet  from  the  surface,  but 
of  course  that  does  not  indicate  the  height  of  tlie  site  above  high- 
water  level.  Since  the  publication  of  Mr  John  Buchanan's  paper 
describing  the  discovery  of  eighteen  canoes  in  the  bed  of  the 
Clyde,  and  from  which  Sir  Archiljald  derived  his  data,  seven 
additional  canoes  have  been  recorded  from  the  same  place,  five  of 
them  being  prior  to  the  2nd  February  1869. 

On  that  date  Mr  Buchanan,  in  an  address  to  the  Glasgow 
Archaeological  Society,  made  the  following  statement:  —  "The 
last  of  the  five  canoes  was  found  also  last  summer,  a  h'ttle 
below  Milton  Island,  near  Douglas.  It  is  22  feet  in  length 
and  about  2  feet  10  inches  in  breadth.  The  interior  is  well 
scooped  out  Some  interesting  relics  were  got  inside.  These 
consist  of  six  stone  celts,  an  oaken  war-club,  and  a  considerable 
piece  of  deer's  horn."  To  what  age  would  Sir  Archibald  assign 
this  canoe?  Judged  by  the  character  of  the  antiquities,  which, 
according  to  his  own  dictum,  is  the  only  chronological  criterion 
admissible,  the  Stone  Age  is  undoubtedly  here  indicated. 

It  must  not,  however,  be  forgotten  that  canoes  do  not  neces- 
sarily carry  us  back  to  prehistoric  times,  as  they  are  frequently, 
if  not  invariably,  associated  with  crannogs  and  other  mediaeval 
structures.  It  is  therefore  extremely  probable  that  some  of  the 
Clyde  fleet  may  have  been  comparatively  modern.  A  few  years 
ago  a  fine  specimen  of  the  dugout  was  discovered  close  to  the 
site  of  the  so-called  crannog  of  Dumbuck,  in  a  kind  of  dock 
of  artificial  construction,  and  just  barely  covered  with  mud.  At 
low-water  its  site  was  exposed  for  several  hours,  but  at  high 
tide  it  was  submerged  to  a  depth  of  8  to  12  feet.  Again,  some 
years  ago  four  canoes  were  discovered  in  the  Loch  of  Kilbirnie, 
one  of  which  contained  a  lion- shaped  ewer  and  a  three-legged 


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248  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh.  [skss. 

pot,  both  made  of  brass  or  bronze — relics  which,  of  course,  relegate 
the  cauoe  to  late  mediseval  times  (Ancient  Scottish  Lake  Dwelliv-gs, 
p.  66).  The  canoe  exposed  during  the  excavation  of  the  Buston 
crannog  had  been  mended  by  boards  fastened  to  its  sides  by 
wooden  pins.  A  gold  coin  of  the  sixth  or  seventh  century  found 
in  the  debris  gives  some  clue  to  the  date  of  this  crannog.  (Ibid.^ 
p.  206.) 

As  to  the  difficulty  about  the  cork  boat-plug,  if  the  material 
really  was  cork,  there  is  no  valid  reason  why  it  would  not 
have  been  brought  to  the  Clyde  by  trading  vessels  in  Roman 
or  post-Roman  times.  Had  the  clinker-built  boat  been  deposited 
in  stratified  marine  sands  anywhere  within  the  substance  of 
the  25-feet  raised  beach  above  present  high-water  mark.  Sir 
Archibald's  deduction  would  have  some  foundation  in  fact.  But 
the  record  is  silent  on  this  crucial  point,  and  only  states  that 
the  boat  lay  keel  uppermost,  as  if  swamped  in  finely-  laminated 
sands,  about  250  feet  back  from  the  ancient  river-margin.  Its 
position  relative  to  sea -level  may,  however,  be  approximately 
inferred  from  the  fact  that  it  was  found  near  Mr  Thomson's 
new  shipbuilding  yard.  Allowing  its  depth  below  the  surface 
to  have  been  19  feet  (see  footnote,  p.  246),  it  is  manifest,  from 
the  lowness'  of  the  locality,  that  its  site  could  not  have  been 
much  above,  but  possibly  greatly  below,  the  level  of  present 
high-water  mark. 

It  is  therefore  quite  evident  that  canoes  were  used  on  the 
Clyde,  without  any  break  of  continuity,  from  the  Stone  Age 
down  to  mediaeval  times.  But  no  specimen,  to  my  knowledge, 
showing  evidence  of  having  been  made  in  the  Iron  Age,  or  in 
post-Roman  times,  has  been  recovered  in  circumstances  which 
would  suggest  that  it  was  abandoned  while  the  level  of  the 
Clyde  estuary  stood  25  feet  higher  than  at  present.  While, 
therefore,  the  opinion  that  some  of  the  Clyde  canoes  foundered 
in  the  Stone  Age  prior  to  the  formation  of  the  raised  beach, 
has  some  foundation  in  fact,  the  inference  that  this  change 
had  taken  place  "long  after  the  islanders  had  become  expert 
in  the  use  of  metal  tools"  can  only  be  regarded  as  a  mere 
gratuitous  assertion,  unsupported  by  any  kind  of  evidence. 

Sir  Archibald  Geikie  next  deals  with  the  archaeological  phe- 


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1903-4.]  Date  of  Upheaval  of  Raised  Beaches  in  Scotland,     249 

nomena  of  the  Forth  valley.  He  begins  by  giving  an  excellent 
account  of  the  composition  of  the  Carse  lands,  with  a  description 
of  the  whale  skeletons,  and  the  deer -horn  implements  found 
along  with  them.  It  may  be  mentioned  that  since  then  another 
deer-horn  implement  associated  with  a  whale  skeleton  has  been 
foimd,  and,  having  fortunately  come  into  the  possession  of  Sir 
William  Turner,  is  now  carefully  preserved  in  the  Anatomical 
Museum  of  the  University  of  Edinburgh  (fig.  1).  It  is  the 
only  one  of  its  kind  now  available  for  study,  all  those  previously 
recorded  having  been  lost.  By  Sir  William's  kind  permission 
I  have  had  the  privilege  of  publishing  an  illustration  of  this 
unique  object  (Prehistoric  Scotland,  p.  58),  from  which  it  will 
be  seen  that  it  is  not  a  harpoon,  but  a  veritable  hammer-axe, 
made  of  a  portion  of  the  beam  of  a  stag's  antler,  and  perforated 


Fig.  1. — Hammer-axe  head  of  stag's  horn,  found  with  a  whale'6  skeleton 
at  Meikle wood,' near  Stirling^.    (J.) 

for  a  handle.  Judging  from  their  de^criptive  records,  the  other 
horn  implements  (some  two  or  three  in  number),  which  were 
found  associated  with  cetaceous  remains,  were  evidently  of  the 
same  kind,  and  had  been .  used  by  the  natives  to  cut  the  blubber 
from  the  stranded  whales.  **The  circumstances  under  which 
these  remains  were  found,"  writes  Sir  .Archibald  (p.  226),  "leave 
no  possibility  of  doubt  that  the  land  here  has  been  upraised 
at  least  24  feet,  and  that  this  upheaval  has  been  witnessed  by 
man.  The  horn  weapons  do  not,  indeed,  indicate  an  advanced 
state  of  civilisation;  yet  they  unquestionably  prove  the  presence 
of  a  human  population,  perhaps  contemporary  with  that  wliich 
built  the  ruder  canoes  of  the  primitive  fleet  of  Glasgow." 

While  cordially  agreeing  with  the  inferential  statements  in 
the  above  extract,  let  us  note  the  admission  that  some  of  the 
Clyde   canoes    might   have   been   contemporary   with   the   whale 


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250  Proceedings  of  Boyal  Society  of  Edinhurgh.  [ 

catastrophe  in  the  Forth,  i.e.  when  the  Carse  lands  were  still 
submerged — for  it  is  not  admissible  to  suppose  that  the  date 
of  elevation  was  different  in  the  two  localities.  The  fact  of 
the  matter  is,  that  neither  the  whale  skeletons  nor  horn  implements 
have  any  bearing  on  the  date  of  the  raised  beach,  beyond  proving 
that  primitive  races  inhabited  the  Forth  valley  when  the  school 
of  whales  were  stranded  in  the  shallow  sea  which  then  occupied 
its  upper  reaches.  Had  the  horn  axe-head  been  made  of  iron 
or  had  worked  objects  of  undoubted  Roman  origin  been  found 
along  with  any  of  the  cetaceous  remains,  the  date  of  upheaval 
would  unquestionably  have  been  brought  down  to  post-Roman 
times. 

The  evidential  materials  of  the  Forth  valley,  by  which  the 
upheaval  is  brought  within  the  domain  of  positive  chronology, 
are  thus  set  forth:  — 

"In  the  elevated  alluvial  plains  of  the  Forth,  canoes  similar  to 
some  of  those  of  the  Clyde  have  also  been  found.  One  was  dug  up 
on  the  Carse,  not  far  from  Falkirk,  from  a  depth  of  30  feet  Early 
in  the  last  century,  too,  a  flood  in  the  river  Carron,  which  flows  through 
the  Carse,  undermined  a  part  of  the  alluvial  plain,  and  laid  bare  what 
was  pronounced  at  the  time  to  be  an  antediluvian  boat.  It  lay  15  feet 
below  the  surface,  and  was  covered  over  with  layers  of  clay,  moss, 
shells,  sand  and  gravel.  Its  dimensions  were  greater  than  those  of  any 
other  canoe  yet  found  in  Scotland,  for  it  reached  a  length  of  36  feet 
with  a  breadth  of  4  feet.  '  It  was  described  by  a  contemporary  news- 
paper as  finely  polished  and  perfectly  smooth,  both  inside  and  outside, 
formed  from  a  single  oak-tree,  with  the  usual  pointed  stem  and  square 
stem.' 

"  These  features,"  he  goes  on  to  say, "  seem  to  harmoniBe  well  with 
those  of  the  more  perfect  of  the  Clyde  canoes,  and  to  justify  the  inference 
that  they  were  produced  by  the  employment,  not  of  stone,  but  of  metal 
tools. 

"  But  on  the  Carse  of  the  Forth  an  implement  of  metal  has  actually 
been  found,  and  one  formed  not  of  bronze,  but  of  iron.  It  was  an  iron 
anchor,  dug  up  a  little  to  the  south-east  of  the  place  from  whence  the 
Dimmore  whale  was  obtained.  The  exact  depth  at  which  it  lay  is  not 
given ;  it  was  probably  about  20  feet  above  high- water.  .  .  .  Pieces 
of  broken  anchors  have  also  been  found  below  Larbert  Bridge,  near 
Camelon. 

"  Putting  together,  therefore,  the  archieological  evidence  to  be  gathered 
from  the  contents  of  the  elevated  silt  of  the  Forth,  the  inference,  I  think, 
can  hardly  be  avoided  that  not  only  was  the  upheaval  effected  subsequent 
to  the  first  human  immigration,  but  that  it  did  not  take  place  until  the 
natives  along  the  banks  of  the  Forth  had  learned  to  work  in  metals,  and 


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1903-4.]  DcUe  of  Upheaved  of  Raised  Beaches  in  Scotland,    251 

until  vessels  sailing  over  that  broad  estuary  had  come  to  be  moored  with 
anchors  of  iron."    (/few?.,  p.  216.) 

The  non  sequitur  of  the  latter  half  of  the  above  conclusion  is  too 
transparent  to  mislead  any  cautious  reader,  but  yet,  so  as  to  leave 
no  loophole  for  escape,  we  will  consider  seriatim  the  various  items 
on  which  it  is  founded. 

(1)  In  the  absence  of  precise  details  of  the  relative  positions  of 
the  Carron  and  Falkirk  canoes  to  present  high-water  level,  and  of 
the  general  circumstances  in  which  they  were  found,  it  would  be 
sheer  folly  to  draw  any  inference  as  to  whether  they  were  swamped 
or  abandoned  before  or  after  the  upheaval.  If  depth  or  thickness 
of  the  superincumbent  materials  be  a  valid  criterion  of  age,  then 
both  these  canoes  must  have  been  far  older  than  the  whale 
skeletons,  which  lay  only  a  few  feet  beneath  the  surface  of  the  clay. 
Then  again,  the  well-known  shiftings  of  river  and  estuary  detritus 
during  floods  are  the  effects  of  powerful  natural  agencies,  which  at 
one  time  unearths  the  works  of  antiquity,  and  at  another  buries 
those  of  modernity  under  fathoms  of  gravel  and  mud. 

(2)  The  story  of  the  iron  anchor  said  to  have  been  discovered 
near  the  site  of  the  Dunmore  whale  skeleton  is  thus  recorded  by 
Mr  Keddoch  in  a  letter  to  Professor  Jameson  (Edin.  Phil  Jour., 
vol.  xi.  p.  416): — 

^  Many  years  ago  an  iron  anchor  was  dug  up  arlittle  to  the  south-east  of 
it  (the  whale  skeleton).  The  fleuks  (sic)  were  much  decayed,  but  the 
beam,  which  was  of  a  rude  square  form  with  an  iron  ring,  was  tolerably 
perfect.  It  hung  many  years  in  the  old  tower  near  Dunmore,  but  was  at 
length  stolen.  Dunmore  Moss  extends  a  great  way  to  the  south-west,  and 
in  it,  at  about  300  yards  from  the  skirts  of  the  wood,  are  found  the  roots 
of  large  oaks." 

From  this  record  we  have  no  certainty  that  the  writer  had  ever 
seen  this  anchor,  or  examined  the  conditions  under  which  it  had 
been  found,  so  that  he  is  merely  repeating  hearsay  evidence.  We 
are  informed  that  the  skeleton  of  the  Dunmore  whale  was  200 
yards  from  the  then  bed  of  the  Forth,  so  that  "  a  little  to  the  south- 
east of  it "  would  be  in  the  direction  of  the  river ;  but  it  would  be 
useless  to  speculate  on  the  precise  distance.  From  the  constant 
shifting  of  the  windings  of  the  Forth,  there  is  nothing  very 
improbable  in  the  discovery  of  a  small  anchor  belonging  to  a 
comparatively  modern  boat  in  this  raised  beach.     Such  anchors  are 


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252         Proceedings  of  Roycd  Society  of  Edinhurgh  [sBaii. 

not  usually  thrown  in  deep  water,  like  those  of  large  vessels,  but 
on  the  shore,  and  one  might  have  been  easily  lost  and  buried  in 
the  mud  during  a  storm.  At  any  rate  it  would  be  a  violation  of 
the  rules  of  scientific  archsBology  to  admit  such  vague  statements 
as  evidence  that  the  raised  beach  was  formed  after  iron  anchors 
came  to  be  used  in  the  Forth,  or  that  this  particular  one  had  any 
chronological  relationship  with  the  "  Dunmore  whale." 

(3)  The  chronological  value  of  the  pieces  of  anchors  found 
below  Larbert  Bridge  may  be  estimated  by  the  perusal  of  the 
following  extract  from  Nimmo's  History  of  Stirlingshire^  one  of 
the  authorities  quoted  for  the  statement : — 

^*  After  the  river  hath  left  the  village  and  bridge  of  Larbert,  it  soon 
comes  up  to  another  small  valley,  through  the  midst  of  which  it  hath 
now  worn  to  itaelf  a  straight  channel,  whereas,  in  former  ages,  it  had 
taken  a  considerable  compass  southwards,  as  appears  by  the  track  of  the 
old  bed,  which  is  still  visible.  The  high  and  circling  banks  upon  the 
south  side  give  to  this  valley  the  appearance  of  a  spacious  bay  ;  and,  as 
tradition  goes,  there  was  once  an  harbour  here.  Nor  docs  the  tradition 
appear  altc^ther  groundless  ;  pieces  of  broken  anchors  have  been  found 
here  in  the  memory  of  people  yet  alive,  and  the  stream-tides  would  still 
flow  near  the  place,  if  they  were  not  kept  back  by  the  great  damhead 
built  across  the  river  at  Stonehouse.  There  is  reason,  too,  to  believe  that 
the  forth  flowed  considerably  higher  in  former  ages  than  it  does  at 
present ;  so  that  there  is  no  improbability  in  supposing  that  at  least 
small  craft  might  have  advanced  thus  far.  In  the  near  neighbourhood 
of  this  valley  stands  the  ruins  of  ancient  Camelon,  which,  though  we 
have  no  ground  to  believe  that  it  ever  had  possessed  that  d^ree  of 
extent  and  splendour  which  some  credulous  authors  mention,  yet  might 
he  inhabited  by  the  natives  of  the  country  for  several  ages  after  it  was 
abandoned  by  the  Romans."    (Page  73,  2nd  ed.) 

Of  all  the  explanations  that  might  have  been  offered  as  to  how 
small  anchors  came  to  be  dropt  in  a  locality  to  which  even  now 
the  tides  reach,  the  hypothesis  that  the  level  of  the  sea  was  then 
25  feet  higher  than  at  present  is  surely  the  least  satisfactory. 
Would  it  not  be  more  rational  to  suppose  that  in  earlier  times  the 
embouchure  of  the  river  Carron  was  more  inland,  and  that 
consequently  the  tides  flowed  further  up?  *  Is  there  no  allowance 
to  be  made  for  the  accumulation  of  the  detritus  brought  down  by 

*  On  referring  to  the  Ordnance  maj*,  I  find  the  highest  point  to  which  the 
ordinary  spring  tides  now  flow  is  at  a  sluice  in  the  Carron  Ironworks,  from 
which  Camelon  is  less  than  a  mile  distant. 


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1903-4.]  Date  of  Upheaval  of  Raised  Beaches  in  Scotland.     253 

its  floods  during  so  many  centuries  ?  Besides,  the  flowing  of  the 
tides  25  feet  higher  would  by  no  means  help  to  explain  the 
position  of  the  anchors,  as  it  is  more  likely  that  they  would  be  lost 
on  the  shallow  margin  of  a  tidal  river  than  in  a  depth  of  25  feet 
of  water. 

As  a  preliminary  to  the  discussion  of  the  more  important 
archeeological  phenomena  of  the  Firth  of  Tay,  Sir  Archibald 
points  out,  in  the  words  of  Mr  Robert  Chambers,  that  "  along  the 
Carse  of  Growrie  many  of  the  hillocks  and  eminences  which  rise 
above  the  general  level  of  the  plain  bear  names  in  which  the  Celtic 
word  inch  (island)  occurs ;  such  as  Inchyra,  Megginch,  Inchmichael, 
Inchmartin,  Inchsture — as  if  a  primitive  people  had  originally 
recognised  these  as  islets  in  the  midst  of  the  shallow  firth." 
{Ancient  Sea  Margins,  p.  18.)  To  this  is  added  the  evidence  of 
tradition  to  the  effect  that  the  Flaw  Craig  and  the  rock  on 
which  Castle  Hiintly  stands  bore  iron  rings,  to  which  ships  were 
fastened  when  the  sea  covered  the  surrounding  carse  lands. 
Finally,  we  have  the  following  statement  of  the  discovery  of 
specific  objects  of  iron,  to  which  the  author  seems  to  attach  great 
importance : — "  Between  60  and  70  years  ago  a  small  anchor  was 
dug  up,  not  many  feet  beneath  the  surface,  on  a  piece  of  low 
ground  near  Megginch  (N,  St  Ad.,  "Perthshire,"  p.  378).  Mr 
Chambers  refers  to  another  anchor  as  having  been  met  with  in 
casting  a  drain  below  the  Flaw  Craig  (Ancient  Sea  Margins,  p.  19). 
But  the  most  important  and  the  most  carefully  investigated  relic  yet 
discovered  in  the  district  was  an  iron  boat-hook  (fig.  2),  found 
in  1837  by  some  workmen  on  the  farm  of  Inchmichael."  (Ibid,, 
p.  19;  and  N,  Phil,  Journal,  1850,  p.  233.) 

It  is  not  surprising  that  the  discovery  of  such  an  array  of 
relics  associated  with  early  navigation,  especially  whjBn  brought 
before  us  by  so  skilled  a  writer,  should  carry  some  weight  with 
general  readers.  It  is  therefore  all  the  more  necessary  to  inquire 
what  their  chronological  value  may  be. 

With  regard  to  the  philological  argument  that  the  Gaelic  word 
inis  (an  island)  appears  in  the  composition  of  several  place-names 
in  the  Carse  of  Gowrie,  it  will  be  sufficient  to  observe  that  its 
English  equivalent,  inch,  has  often  been  applied  to  low-lying 
meadows  near  water,  such  as  the  North  and  South  Inches  in  the 


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254  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh.  [srss. 

town  of  Perth,  which  never  were  islands.  The  story  of  the 
existence  of  iron  rings  in  the  adjacent  rocks  for  the  mooring  of 
boats  wants  the  essential  link  of  an  eye-witness  to  make  it 
admissible  as  an  argument  in  this  inquiry.  There  i-emain,  there- 
fore, to  be  seriously  considered  the  circumstances  under  which  the 
two  anchors  and  boat-hook  were  discovered. 

The  Megginch  anchor  is  thus  referred  to  by  the  author  of  the 
article  on  "  Perthshire  "  in  the  N.  St.  Act.  of  Scotland  (p.  378)  :— 

"The  writer  has  conversed  with  a  man  who  told  him  that  he 
recollects  distinctly  of  hearing  his  father  state  that,  at  a  period  of 


\ 


FiO.  2.  —Boat-hook  of  iron,  found  in  Caree  of  Gowrie.    (^. ) 

about  forty  years  ago,  the  latter  was  engaged  in  digging  in  a  piece 
of  very  low  ground  on  the  estate  of  Megginch,  not  many  feet 
beneath  the  surface,  when  he  and  his  fellow  labourer  found  a  small 
anchor,  the  figure  of  which  was  tolerably  preserved,  but  which 
mouldered  down  or  went  to  pieces  when  lifted." 

The  discovery  of  the  other  anchor  and  the  boat-hook  is  recorded 
by  Mr  Robert  Chambers  (Ancient  Sea  Margins,  p.  20) : — 

"  In  the  same  district,  which  is  fully  a  mile  from  the  margin 
of  the  firth,  a  boat-hook  was  discovered  8  feet  below  the  surface, 


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1903-4.]  Date  of  Upheaval  of  liaised  Beaches  in  Scotland.    255 

sticking  among  the  gravel,  as  if  left  by  the  tide  on  the  sea-shore. 
This  relic  has  been  preserved  by  the  farmer  who  found  it.* 

^'  I  am  also  assured  that  what  was  considered  as  the  remains  of 
an  anchor  were  found  some  years  ago  in  casting  a  drain  below 
Flaw  Craig,  a  clitf  which  overlooks  the  Carse,  between  Kiimaird 
and  Fingask." 

Mr  Chambers  takes  the  precaution  to  state  that  for  these 
remark)!,  and  others  which  followed,  he  quotes  from  "  a  letter  from 
a  lady,  the  daughter  of  one  of  the  chief  proprietors  of  the  Carse.'' 
Subsequently,  however,  owing  to  the  importance  of  the  subject, 
he  recurs  to  it  (Edin.  Phil.  Journal,  vol.  49,  p.  233,  1850),  and 
informs  us  that  he  ''took  some  trouble  to  ascertain  the  precise 
local  and  geological  circumstances  of  the  relic,  as  observed  at  the 
time  of  the  discovery. 

It  is  unnecessary  to  epitomise  the  result  of  this  inquiry,  the 
upshot  of  which  was  that  the  spot  where  the  boat-hook  lay  was 
8  feet  below  the  surface,  20  feet  above  the  level  of  present 
high  tides,  and  about  a  mile  distant  from  the  estuary  of  the  Tay. 
It  is  advisable,  however,  to  quote  tlie  following  incidental  remarks, 
which  seem  to  contain  the  germ  of  a  more  natural  explanation  of 
its  presence  in  the  locality  than  that  of  Sir  Archibald  Qeikie. 

"One  important  feature  of  the  Carse  in  this  district  is  now  to 
be  adverted  to,  namely,  a  trench  or  ditch  in  which  a  little  rill 
crosses  the  plain  obliquely  to  join  the  estuary  in  one  of  those 
creeks  locally  called  paws.  The  distance  of  this  rill  is  not 
more  than  150  yards  from  the  spot  where  the  boat-hook  was 
discovered.  It  is,  in  these  days  of  high  cultivation,  a  narrow 
ditch  of  well-defined  sides,  but  no  one  can  doubt  that  in  other 
times  it  would  comprehend  a  wider  space.  Now,  the  bottom  of 
the  ditch  at  this  place  is  so  little  above  the  level  of  the  sea  that 
an  abnormal  tide  might  reach  it." 

After  describing  several  instances  of  great  floods  Mr  Cliambers 
writes:— ""With  such  events  as  those  on  record,  within  the  period 

*Thi8  object  (fig.  2)  is  now  in  the  National  Museum  of  Antiquities,  Edin* 
bnigh,  and  consists  of  a  socketed  spike,  11  inches  in  length,  from  tlie  middle 
of  which  the  hook  curves  backwardn.  The  socket  is  formed  by  the  backward 
folding  of  the  irou,  the  edges  only  partially  meeting,  and  in  it  the  handle 
was  fixed  by  a  rivet.  From  its  appearance,  it  mi^ht  belong  to  compara- 
tively recent  times. 


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256  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh,  [ssst. 

during  which  iron  implements  have  been  in  use,  it  does  not  appear 
very  difficult  to  account  for  the  loss  and  embedding  of  the  Inch- 
michael  boat-hook,  without  calling  any  greater  geological  forces 
into  operation  in  the  case." 

Mr  Chambers'  idea,  that  a  flood  might  account  iov  the  stranding 
of  the  boat-hook,  was  opposed  by  Sir  Archibald  Geikie,  on  the 
ground  that  the  effects  of  a  storm  would  not  adequately  explain 
the  geological  phenomena.  "We  can  hardly  conceive,"  he  writes, 
"  the  sea  rising  upwards  of  28  feet  above  high- water  mark,  and 
flowing  for  more  than  a  mile  inland ;  still  less  can  we  believe  that, 
if  it  did  so  rise,  it  could  deposit  8  feet  of  sediment  over  the 
surface  of  the  Carse."  But,  waiving  the  intervention  of  a  flood, 
is  there  anything  very  improbable  in  the  supposition  that  the  pow^ 
described  by  Mr  Chambers  as  little  above  present  sea-level,  wias 
formerly  sufficiently  deep,  either  by  natural  or  artificial  means,  to 
admit  of  a  boat  being  rowed  to  the  spot?  Before  the  days  of 
railways,  harbours,  and  piers,  trading  vessels  were  beached  on 
convenient  places  for  the  purpose  of  loading  or  unloading  their 
cargoes.  But  surely  it  is  unnecessary  to  discuss  the  possible  ways 
in  which  such  a  portable  object  as  a  small  boat-hook  might  have 
got  strayed.  The  suggestion  that  it  was  lost  by  a  sporting  sailor 
in  a  wild-boar  hunt  is  as  feasible  an  explanation  as  that  it  was 
dropt  from  a  sailing-vessel  while  the  Carse  lands  were  still  sub- 
merged. But  whatever  the  true  explanation  may  be,  there  can  be 
no  doubt  that  this  boat-hook  is  a  relic  of  post-Roman  times,  and 
probably  much  nearer  the  present  day  than  the  Roman  period. 

Sir  Archibald's  next  and  final  argument  in  support  of  his  thesis 
is  the  relative  positions  of  the  ends  of  the  Wall  of  Antoninus  to  the 
high-water  marks  in  the  adjacent  estuaries.  It  is  thus  presented 
to  us : — 

'^  Mr  Smith  of  Jordan  Hill  was  the  first  to  assert  that  since  the  Antonine 
Wall  was  built  (about  a.d.  140)  there  could  have  been  no  change  in  the 
relative  position  of  sea  and  land,  inasmuch  as  the  ends  of  the  wall  were 
evidently  constructed  with  reference  to  the  existing  level  {Mem,  Wtm, 
Soc.y  viii.  p.  68,  and  Edin.  New  Phil,  Journal,  vol.  xxv.,  for  1838,  p.  386). 
This  statement  has  been  the  foundation  of  all  the  subsequent  geological 
arguments  as  to  the  long  period  at  which  the  British  Isles  have  been 
stationary.  If  it  be  true,  then  we  must  allow  that  the  upheaval,  of  which 
the  evidence  has  been  adduced  in  the  present  conmiunication,  is  referable 


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1903-4.]  DcUe  of  Upheaval  of  liaised  Beaches  in  Scotland.    257 

to  a  period  certainly  previous  to  the  Roman  invasion.  If  the  statement 
be  erroneous,  the  other  alternative  remains,  that  the  upward  movement 
may  have  been  wholly  or  in  part  effected  after  the  Roman  invasion, 

"  After  carefully  examining  both  extremities  of  the  wall,  and  reading  the 
narratives  of  the  vaiious  antiquaries  who  have  treated  of  the  Roman 
remains  in  Scotland,  I  have  no  hesitation  in  affirming  that  not  only  is 
there  no  evidence  that  the  wall  was  constructed  with  a  regard  to  the 
present  level  of  the  land,  but  there  is  every  ground  for  believing  that  it 
was  built  when  the  land  was  at  least  20  feet  lower  than  it  is  at  present. 
To  begin  with  the  east  end :  from  the  Avon,  west  of  Borrowstounness, 
eastward  to  Carriden,  the  ground  rises  from  the  old  coast  line  as  a  steep 
bank,  the  summit  of  which  is  from  50  to  100  feet  above  the  sea  ;  between 
the  bottom  of  this  abrupt  declivity  and  the  present  margin  of  the  Firth 
there  is  a  narrow  strip  of  flat  ground,  about  200  yards  broad,  on  which 
Borrowstoimness  is  built,  and  which  nowhere  rises  more  than  20  feet 
above  high-water.  It  is  a  mere  prolongation  of  the  Falkirk  carse, 
already  described,  and  beyond  doubt  formed  the  beach  where  the  sea 
broke  against  the  base  of  the  steep  bank.  Now  the  Roman  Wall  was 
carried,  not  along  this  low  land  bordering  the  sea,  but  along  the  high 
ground  that  rose  above  it.  The  extremity  at  Carriden,  therefore,  instead 
of  having  any  reference  to  the  present  limit  of  the  tides,  actually  stood  on 
the  summit  of  a  steep  bank  overhanging  the  sea,  above  which  it  was 
elevated  fully  100  feet.  If  the  land  here  were  depressed  25  feet,  no  part  of 
the  wall  would  be  submerged.  The  only  change  on  the  coast-line  would 
be  in  the  advance  of  the  sea  across  the  narrow  flat  terrace  of  Borrowstoun- 
ness and  Grange,  as  far  as  the  bottom  of  the  abrupt  declivity. 

"The  western  termination  of  the  Antonine  Wall  stood  on  the  little 
eminence  called  Chapel  Hill,  near  West  Kilpatrick,  on  the  north  bank  of 
the  Clyde.  Between  this  rising  ground  and  the  margin  of  the  river  lies 
the  Forth  and  Clyde  Canal,  the  surface  of  which  is  20  feet  above  high- 
water  mark,  and  the  base  of  the  hill  at  least  5  or  6  feet  higher.  Hence 
the  wall  terminated  upon  a  hill,  the  base  of  which  is  not  less  than  25  feet 
above  the  present  level  of  the  sea.  In  making  the  canal,  a  number  of 
Roman  antiquities  were  found  at  various  depths  in  the  alluvium  :  these 
seem  to  have  been  part  of  the  ruins  from  the  fort  above.  If  we  admit 
that  the  wall  was  constructed  previous  to  the  last  elevation  of  the  land, 
we  see  a  peculiar  fitness  in  the  site  of  its  western  termination.  The 
Chapel  Hill  must,  in  that  case,  have  been  a  promontory  jutting  out  into 
the  stream,  and  at  high-water  the  river  must  have  washed  the  base  of  the 
Kilpatrick  Hills— a  range  of  heights  that  rise  steeply  from  lower  grounds, 
and  sweep  away  to  the  north-east.  Hence,  apart  altogether  from  con- 
siderations dependent  upon  the  strategic  position  of  the  hills,  which  were 
infested  by  the  barbarians,  we  obtain  an  obvious  reason  why  Lollius 
Urbicus  ended  his  vallum  at  Old  Kilpatrick."— (/Wd,  p.  228.) 

For  the  purpose  of  homologating  these  views,  he  quotes  passages 
from  the  writings  of  various  antiquaries,  the  most  pertinent  of 
which  are  the  following : — 

PBGC.  ROY.  see.  EDIN. — VOL.  XXV.  17 


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258  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh  [sjsss. 

"  If  tlie  Falkirk  carses  were  not  entirely  overflown  in  the  time 
of  the  Romans,  it  is  probable  at  least  that  they  were  then  salt- 
marshes,  subject  in  some  degree  to  temporary  inundations  in  high 
spring  tides."     (Roy,  Military  Antiquities,  book  iv.  c.  iii.  sect.  2.) 

Mr  Stuart,  author  of  Caledonia  Roiiuma  (p.  177),  declares  his 
belief  that  "  the  whole  of  this  lower  district  (towards  the  mouth  of 
the  Carron)  had  in  all  likelihood  been  covered  by  the  sea  when 
the  Roman  forces  occupied  the  Wall  of  Antonine.  It  is  likewise 
probable  that  the  entire  plain  between  Inneravon  and  Grahams- 
town  (that  is,  the  whole  of  the  Falkirk  cai-se)  was  at  the  same 
period  subject  to  the  influx  of  the  tide,  which  may  even  have 
penetrated  the  deeper  hollows  of  the  Carron  as  far  up  as 
Dunipace." 

In  a  footnote  at  the  end  of  his  long  communication,  Sir  Archibald 
writes  as  follows : — 

"  I  have  not  deemed  it  necessary  to  increase  the  length  of  this  com- 
munication by  controverting  the  alleged  Roman  origin  of  certain  road- 
ways and  other  traces  of  art.  found  along  the  present  coast-line  at  a 
height  of  less  than  20  feet  al)ove  high-water  mark.  The  causeway  of 
logs,  for  instance,  which  crossed  a  part  of  the  Kincardine  Moss,  in  the 
Carse  of  Stirling,  is  commonly  spoken  of  as  Roman,  but  this  is  mere 
conjecture.  The  bronze  vessel  found  in  the  same  moss,  and  cited  by 
some  writers  as  a  Roman  camp-kettle,  is  most  certainly  of  ancient  British 
workmanship." 

The  final  conclusions  drawn  from  these  elaborate  investigations 
are  thus  stated  : — 

"  Putting  together  all  the  evidence  which  the  antiquities  yet  dis- 
covered along  the  Scottish  coast-line  afibrd  as  to  the  date  of  the  last 
upheaval  of  the  country,  we  are  led  to  infer  that  this  upheaval  must  have 
taken  place  long  after  the  first  human  population  settled  in  the  island — 
long  after  metal  implements  had  come  into  use,  after  even  the  introduc- 
tion of  iron  ;  and  reviewing  the  position  and  nature  of  the  relics  of  the 
Roman  occupation,  we  see  no  ground  why  the  movement  may  not  have 
been  effected  since  the  first  century  of  our  era  ;  nay,  there  appear  to  be 
several  cogent  arguments  to  make  that  date  the  limit  of  its  antiquity  " 
(p.  232). 

The  publication  of  Sir  Archibald's  essay  naturally  attracted 
attention.  His  theory  as  to  the  date  of  the  25-feet  raised  beach 
was  accepted  by  some  of  the  leading  geologists  and  archaeologists 
of  the  day,  among  whom  were  Sir  Charles  Lyell  {Antiquity  of 


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i90i-4.]  Date  of  Upheaval  of  Raised  Beaches  in  Scotland.     259 

Man,  3rd  ecL,  p.  50  et  seq.)*  Sir  Daniel  Wilson  {Prehistoric 
AnnalSy  vol.  i.  p.  38),  and  Professor  Ramsay  (Geology  and 
Geography  of  Great  Britain,  p.  251).  On  the  other  hand, 
several  local  geologists  raised  objections  on  various  grounds  to 
the  validity  of  some  of  his  arguments.  Mr  Alexander  Bryson, 
F.R.S.E.,  contended  that  the  so-called  Roman  pottery  from  the 
Leith  sand-pit  were  merely  fragments  of  dishes  made,  within  the 
memory  of  living  persons,  at  a  Portobello  manufactory,  and  of 
glazed  flower-pots  which  skippers  were  in  the  habit  of  bringing 
from  Holland  to  adorn  their  parlour  windows  (Proc.  Roy,  Phys. 
JSoc,  vol.  iii.  p.  284).  In  1873  David  Milne  Home,  Esq., 
fluccessfully  controverted  his  deductions  from  the  height  of  the 
ends  cf  the  Antonine  Wall  above  present  sea-level  (Trans.  Roy. 
aSoc.  Edin.,  vol.  xxvii.) — a  result  mainly  due  to  the  discovery  in 
1868  of  a  Roman  sculptured  tablet  which  definitely  fixed  the 
eastern  termination  of  the  wall  to  be  at  Bridgeness,  and  not  at 
Carriden,  as  was  generally  supposed  when  Sir  Archibald  wrote  his 
paper. 

Mr  Home's  chief  argument  was  that  the  position  of  the  tablet 
sX  Bridgeness  proved  that  the  Antonine  Wall  terminated  so  close 
to  the  sea  as  to  preclude  the  idea  that,  when  that  wall  and  tablet 
were  inserted,  the  land  could  have  been  25  feet  lower  than  now. 
The  spot  where  the  tablet  was  found  was  exactly  19  feet  above 
ordinary  spring  tides,  and  at  the  place  where  it  lay  there  was  a 
quantity  of  squared  stones  in  a  confused  heap,  some  of  which  bore 
the  marks  of  masons*  tools,  evidently  forming  part  of  the  wall  in 
which  the  tablet  had  been  fixed.  At  the  point,  and  only  one  or 
two  feet  above  present  high-water  mark,  a  portion  of  a  building 
was  discovered,  a  few  yards  in  length,  consisting  chiefly  of  large 
whinstone  boulders.  The  line  of  this  building  pointed  towards 
the  place  where  the  tablet  was  found,  "  so  that  if  the  building  had 
continued  on  the  same  line,  it  would  have  passed  through  or  near 
the  site  of  the  tablet."  The  effect  of  these  discoveries  on  the 
post-Roman  theory  of  the  upheaval  is  thus  stated  : — 

*  It  Hppears  that  Sir  Charles  Lyell,  in  consequence  of  the  articles  of 
Mr  Milne  Home,  abandoned  the  post-Roman  theory,  and  accordingly  his 
remarks  on  the  subject  were  deleted  from  the  fourth  edition  of  his  Antiquity 
of  Man.     Trans,  of  the  Roy.  Soc.  Edin.,  vol.  xxvii.  pp.  39-41. 


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260  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh,  [sess. 

"If  the  land  was  then  twenty-five  feet  lower  than  now,  then  the 
tablet,  and  the  wall  in  which  it  was  fixed,  must  have  been  six  feet  under 
the  sea  at  every  tide,  and  must  also  have  been  so  exposed  to  the  beating 
of  the  waves  that  neither  tablet  nor  wall  could  have  stood  many  weeks. 
It  is  impoesible  to  suppose  that  the  tablet,  with  elaborate  sculpturing, 
and  bearing  a  dedication  to  the  emperor,  could  have  Ijeen  set  up  in  such 
a  position.  Moreover,  the  neck  of  land  which  joins  the  ness  or  knoll  to 
the  mainland  being  only  twenty-three  feet  above  high-water,  must  have 
been  submerged  and  exposed,  so  that  any  wall  or  rampart  on  that  neck 
would  soon  also  have  succumbed  to  the  waves.  Then  there  is  the  old 
building  at  the  point  of  the  ness,  which,  if  Roman  (as  it  appears  to  be), 
must  have  been  aJt  all  times  under  water,  even  at  the  lowest  tide,  were 
Professor  Geikie's  theory  correct."  (Trans.  Roy,  Soc.  Ed.y  vol  xxvii. 
p.  45.) 

In  criticising  Sir  Archibald  Geikie's  speculative  deductions, 
founded  on  the  geological  and  archaeological  phenomena  connected 
with  the  western  termination  of  the  Antonine  Wall  on  the  top  of 
Chapel  Hill,  Mr  Home  thus  expresses  himself : — 

"  If  the  Roman  antiquities  here  mentioned  (see  page  257)  be  the  same 
as  those  described  in  the  Statistical  Account^  their  position  is  not 
correctly  stated  by  Professor  Geikie.  They  can  in  no  sense  be  re- 
presented as  having  fallen  from  the  fort  above.  The  relics  were  found,, 
not  (as  he  says)  at  various  depths  in  the  alluvium,  but  in  a  subterranean 
recess — i,e,  in  a  cavity  which  contained  them.  As  there  were  vases  as  well 
as  coins,  the  probability  is  that  it  was  a  grave.  Now,  as  this  recess, 
when  formed,  must  have  been  several  feet  below  the  surface  of  the 
ground,  and  as  the  surface  of  the  ground  is  admitted  to  have  been  only 
twenty  feet  above  the  present  high-water  mark,  the  *  recess '  must  have 
been  at  least  seven  or  eight  feet  imder  the  sea  if,  during  the  Roman 
occupation,  the  land  was  twenty-five  feet  lower  tlian  now."    (Ibid,,  p.  48.) 

Hitherto  my  chief  r61e  in  this  controversy  has  been  to  meet  the 
statements  and  logic  of  the  advocates  of  the  post-Roman  theory 
with  a  non  sequitur  on  all  the  points  raised — of  course  utilising  for 
this  purpose  the  arguments  advanced  against  it  by  previous  ^vrite^s 
on  the  subject.  Henceforth,  however,  I  become  a  direct  supporter 
of  a  theory  about  these  beaches  which  I  have  elsewhere  formulated,, 
and  which  for  distinction  may  be  called  the  pre-Roman  theory, 
viz.,  that  the  upheaval  took  place  "  subsequent  to  the  appearance 
of  man  in  the  district,  but  prior  to  its  occupation  by  the  Romans." 
This  was  the  conclusion  come  to  in  an  address  which,  as  president 
of  the  Antiquarian  Section  of  the  Archaeological  Institute,  I  gave 
at  Lancaster  in  1898  (Journal ,  vol.  55,  pp.  259-285). 


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1908-4.]  Date  of  Upheaval  of  Riisei  Beaches  in  Scotlaind,    261 

In  looking  about  for  positive  evidence  in  support  of  the  pre- 
Roman  theory,  we  shall  first  of  all  deal  with  the  wooden  roadway 
and  the  so-called  Roman  camp-kettle,  which  Sir  Archibald  Geikie 
did  not  think  of  sufficient  archaeological  value  to  be  discussed 
among  the  evidential  materials  from  the  Forth  valley. 

Nothing  can  be  more  certain  than  that  the  chronological 
sequence  in  the  physical  phenomena  of  the  Forth  valley  was  sea, 
forest,  peat,  and  modem  cultivation — the  last  stage  being  due  to 
the  removal  of  the  peat  by  the  hand  of  man.  Now,  objects  of 
human  workmanship  which  happened  to  be  lost  or  abandoned  in 
these  woods  became  ultimately  covered  over  with  peat,  and  so  were 
less  liable  to  the  ordinary  processes  of  decay.  Hence  such 
relics,  when  recovered  in  these  circumstances,  are  often  in  an 
excellent  state  of  preservation.  Of  the  condition  of  the  peat  mosses 
of  Kincardine  and  Flanders  towards  the  end  of  the  eighteenth 
century,  we  have  a  good  account  by  the  Rev.  Christopher  Tait, 
minister  of  the  parish  of  Kincardine  {Tram,  Roy,  iSoc.  Edin.y 
vol.  iii.),  from  which  the  following  is  an  interesting  extract : — 

"  The  trees  are  oak,  birch,  hazel,  alder,  willow,  and  in  one  place  there 
are  a  few  firs.  Among  these  the  oak  aboimds  most,  especially  on  the 
west  side  of  the  moss,  where  forty  large  trees  of  this  species  were  lately 
found  lying  by  their  roots,  and  as  close  to  one  another  as  they  can  be 
supposed  to  have  grown.  One  of  these  oaks  measures  50  feet  in  length 
and  more  than  3  feet  in  diameter,  and  314  circles  or  years'  gro\vths  were 
counted  in  one  of  the  roots."    (/6m/.,  p.  272.) 

He  further  observes  that  the  trees  were  not  blown  down,  but  cut 
about  2  feet  from  the  ground.  "  The  marks  of  an  axe,  not  ex- 
ceeding 2|  inches  in  breadth,  are  sometimes  discernible  on  the 
lower  ends  of  these  trees." 

The  Roman  roadway  is  thus  described  : — 

"That  a  people  more  civilised  than  the  ancient  Caledonians  must 
have  been  in  this  country  before  the  moss  of  Kincardine  existed  is 
completely  established  by  the  discovery  of  a  road  on  the  surface  of  the 
clay  at  the  bottom  of  that  moss,  after  the  peat,  to  the  dej^th  of  8  feet, 
had  been  removed.  The  part  of  this  road  already  discovered  is  about 
70  yards  long  ;  the  breadth  of  it  is  4  yards,  and  it  is  constructed  of  trees 
measuring  from  9  to  12  inches  in  diameter,  laid  in  the  direction  of  the 
road.  Across  these  have  been  laid  other  trees  about  half  their  size,  and 
the  whole  has  been  covered  with  bmshwood.  The  depths  of  the  materials 
varies  in  conformity  to  the  nature  of  the  soil ;  the  trees,  which  arc  laid 


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262  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  £dinburgh.  [i 

lengthwise,  being  generally  on  the  surface  of  the  clay,  but  in  the  lowest 
and  wettest  parts  they  are  sunk  about  2  feet  under  the  surface. 

^'This  road  lies  across  a  piece  of  ground  lower  than  the  adjacent 
grounds,  and  its  direction  is  from  the  Forth  across  the  moss,  where  it  is 
narrowest,  towards  a  road,  supposed  to  be  Roman,  that  passes  between 
the  mo58  and  the  river  Teith.  The  vestiges  of  this  last  road  have  been 
traced,  from  about  four  miles  north-west  of  the  Bridge  of  Drip,  where 
formerly  there  was  a  ford  across  the  river,  south-east  of  Torwood  and 
Larbert,  to  Camelon  on  the  wall."    (Ibid ,  276.) 

The  signiiicance  and  bearing  of  this  road  on  the  upheaval 
question  is  concisely  stated  by  Mr  Milne  Home  as  follows : — 

"The  tide  now  comes  up  to  Craigforth,  which  is  about  half  a  mile 
below  Drip,  and  with  a  fall  of  only  4  feet  between  the  two  points.  If, 
therefore,  the  land  wa^  during  the  time  of  the  Romans  25  feet  lower 
than  now,  neither  the  Drip  Ford  nor  any  river  could  then  have  existed, 
for  the  whole  country  west  of  Stirling  must  have  been  covered  by  the 
sea,  even  at  the  lowest  spring  tides."    (Ibid.y  voL  xxvii  p.  49.) 

The  finding  of  portions  of  similar  roadways  in  Flanders  Moss  is 
noticed  by  several  writers  of  the  period.  One  such  structure, 
described  as  having  logs  lying  across  each  other  like  a  raft,  with 
a  general  direction  from  south-east  to  north-west,  is  supposed  to 
have  been  a  branch  of  the  Roman  way  from  Camelon. 

The  general  evidence,  over  and  above  tradition,  which  associates 
these  roads  with  the  incursion  of  the  Romans  into  the  valley,  has, 
in  my  opinion,  considerable  weight,  certainly  more  than  can  be 
expressed  by  the  words  '*  mere  conjecture.'*  Historians  are  almost 
unanimously  of  the  opinion  that  the  march  of  the  soldiers  of 
Agricola  to  the  estuary  of  the  Tay  was  from  Camelon,  via  Stirling, 
Dunblane,  Ardoch,  and  Stratheme ;  in  which  case  the  most  con- 
venient place  to  cross  the  river  Forth  would  be  a  few  miles 
to  the  west  of  Stirling  (as  shown  on  the  map  in  Gordon's  Itiner- 
avium  Sepientrionale),  and  just  in  line  with  the  wooden  causeway 
in  the  Kincardine  Moss.  In  support  of  this  view  the  following 
fact  is  worth  mentioning.  It  will  be  recollected  that  the  Rev. 
Mr  Tait,  in  noticing  the  cutting  marks  on  the  felled  trees  found 
in  the  Kincardine  Moss,  describes  the  axe  cuts  as  not  exceeding 
2^  inches  in  breadth.  Now  it  is  very  significant  that  the  only 
iron  axe-head  found  in  the  Ardoch  camp,  during  its  recent  ex- 
ploration by  the  Society  of  Antiquaries,  measured  5|  inches  in 


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1903-4.]  Date  of  Upheaval  of  Raised  Beaches  in  Scotland,    263 

length  by  2 J  inches  across  its  cutting  face  (ProCj  vol.  xxziii., 
fig.  14,  p.  463). 

If  it  be  true,  then,  that  when  the  Romans  invaded  Scotland, 
*  towards  the  close  of  the  first  century  a.d  ,  the  areas  subsequently 
covered  by  peat  within  the  25-feet  raised  beach  were  then  occu- 
pied by  great  forests,  it  is  but  natural  to  suppose  that  objects  lost 
in  these  forests  would  be  recovered,  in  modern  times,  in  course  of 
the  operation  of  removing  the  peat,  so  as  to  convert  the  rich  clays 
underneath  into  arable  land.  On  this  point  Mr  Milne  Home 
writes : — **  Stone  hatchets  and  other  stone  implements  of  a  very 
primitive  people  have  been  found  also  on  Blair-Drummond  estate, 
lying  on  the  surface  of  the  carse  clay,  after  the  peat  moss  lying 
above  it  was  removed.  These  implements  were,  as  I  understand, 
in  localities  below  or  within  the  line  of  the  old  sea-cliff,  and  not 
very  far  from  where  the  Blair-Drummond  whale  was  found.  I 
have  seen  three  of  these  implements  :  one  was  in  the  Macfarlane 
Museum,  Stirling ;  the  other  two  in  the  possession  of  the  late  Mr 
Home  Drummond,  who  showed  them  to  me  at  Blair-Drummond 
in  September  1863."  (The  Estuary  of  the  Forth,  p.  116.)  This 
would  seem  to  show  that  the  elevation  made  some  progress  in  the 
Stone  Age. 

Among  other  relics  thus  brought  to  light,  there  is  one  which 
has  a  special  chronological  value,  viz.,  a  large  bronze  caldron 
(fig.  3),  now  preserved  in  the  National  Museum  of  Antiquities, 
Edinbui^h.  It  is  recorded  as  having  been  found  in  1768, 
"upon  the  surface  of  the  clay,  buried  under  the  moss.'*  It  is 
made  of  thin  plates  of  beaten  bronze  riveted  together,  the 
rounded  bottom  portion  being  fashioned  out  of  one  piece,  and 
measures  25  inches  in  diameter  and  16  inches  in  depth.  The 
everted  rim  is  formed  of  a  couple  of  bands  of  sheet  bronze 
fastened  to  the  upper  edge  of  the  vessel,  and  bears  marks  of 
the  rivets  by  means  of  which  a  pair  of  ring-handles  had  been 
attached.  Sir  Daniel  Wilson  informs  us  that  two  rings  (pre- 
simiably  its  detached  handles),  each  measuring  4J  inclies  in 
diameter,  were  found  along  with  it.  "No  question,"  writes 
Sir  Daniel,  "can  exist  of  its  native  workmanship.  The  rings 
and  staples  are  neatly  designed,  but  rudely  and  imperfectly 
cast   and   finished,   and   are   decorated   exactly   as   those   of   the 


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264  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Ediiiburgh,  [skss. 

Farney  caldron.  The  circles  embossed  on  the  side  of  the  vessel 
are,  in  like  manner,  such  as  have  been  frequently  noted  on 
objects  of  the  Bronze  period,  both  in  Britain  and  on  the  Continent. 
Nevertheless,  in  accordance  with  the  classical  system  of  desig- 
nation, which  is  even  yet  only  partially  exploded,  this  remarkable 
native  relic  figures  in  the  printed  list  of  donations  in  the 
Archoeologia  Scotica  as  a  Roman  camp-kettle."     {IbvL,  p.  409.) 

The  acceptance   of  Sir  Daniel's  opinion  as  final  carries  with 
it  strong  presumptive  evidence  to  show  that  the  surface  of  the 


Fig.  3. — Bronze  Caldron  found  in  the  Moss  of  Kincardine  (25  inclies 
diameter). 

clay  beneath  the  peat  was  already  dry  land  in  the  latter  part 
of  the  Bronze  Age — an  admission  which  would  at  once  give  the 
coup  ffe  grace  to  the  post-Roman  theory  of  the  raised  beaches. 
But  as  this  opinion  may  be  controverted  on  the  ground  that  the 
caldron  might  be  regarded  as  a  survival  from  a  former  to  a  later 
age,  it  is  desirable  to  determine  as  accurately  as  possible  the 
chronological  range  of  the  class  of  objects  to  which  it  belongs. 
Spheroidal  bronze  caldrons,  similar  in   type  and  make  to  t)ie 


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1903-4.]  Date  of  Upheaval  of  Raised  Beaches  in  Scotland.    265 

Kincardine  caldron,  have  been  discovered  elsewhere  in  Scotland, 
as  well  as  in  various  localities  in  England  and  Ireland.  Of  the 
Scottish  finds,  some  consist  of  merely  ring-handles  or  other  frag- 
ments, such  as  were  among  the  bronze  hoards  found  in  Budding- 
stone  Loch  and  at  Kilkerran  (Prehistoric  Annals,  vol.  i.  p.  349). 
Entire  specimens  were,  however,  among  the  Bronze  Age  relics  at 
Dowris,  King's  Co.,  Ireland,  and  at  Heathery  Burn  Cave,  Dur- 
ham (Ancient  Bronze  Implements,  pp.  361  and  412;  Proc,  Soc. 
Antiq.,  2nd  series,  vol.  ii.  p.  132).  On  the  other  hand,  analogous 
caldrons,  but  perhaps  not  so  artistically  finished,  have  been 
discovered  at  Cockbumspath,  Berwickshire,  and  in  Carlingwark 
Loch,  Kirkcudbrightshire,  associated  with  iron  tools  and  other 
objects  undoubtedly  of  post-Roman  date.  The  former  of  these 
Iron  Age  finds  are  thus  described: — 

"They  included  two  lai^e  vessels  of  extremely  thin  sheet  bronze, 
apparently  with  traces  of  gilding  externally,  and  measuring,  the  one 
about  21  inches  in  diameter  and  10  inches  in  depth,  and  the  other 
13  inches  in  diameter  and  7^  inches  in  depth.  When  found  these  vessels 
were  entire,  and  the  one  appeared  to  have  been  inverted  on  the  other, 
with  the  articles  within  them.  The  large  one  has  obviously  l^een  much 
exposed  to  the  fire,  and  repeatedly  repaired  ;  the  smaller  one  has  had 
handles  fastened  to  it  on  opposite  sides  by  three  rivets,  the  holes  for 
which  remain,  and  it  lias  probably  also  been  strengthened  by  a  rim 
of  iron,  without  which  it  would  collapse,  from  the  extreme  thinness 
of  the  metal,  if  lifted  full  of  water.  It  is  probable  that  the  whole  were 
contained  in  a  large  wooden  pail,  as  there  were  two  large  rings  with 
staples  and  nails,  the  latter  of  which  are  bent  in,  indicating  the  thickness 
of  the  staves  to  have  been  about  |  of  an  inch.  The  rings  measure  4j 
inches  in  diameter.  There  are  also  a  number  of  iron  hoops,  broken  and 
crushed  together,  but  which  there  can  be  little  doubt  encircled  the 
wooden  paiL 

"  The  objects  enclosed  included  a  bronze  Roman  patella  of  the  usual 
form,  6}  inches  in  diameter,  and  with  the  bottom  composed  of  concentric 
rings  in  lx)ld  relief,  but  wanting  the  handle  ;  the  large  iron  chain  figured 
above,  measuring  27  inches  in  length  ;  a  circular  bronze  ornament, 
apparently  the  shield  to  which  the  handle  of  some  object  has  been 
attached,  measuring  nearly  3  inches  in  diameter ;  an  iron  lamp-stand, 
similar  to  examples  frequently  foimd  on  Roman  sites  ;  two  iron  knives, 
one  of  them  with  a  wooden  handle  ;  an  iron  gouge  ;  two  iron  hammers  ; 
an  iron  tankard  or  jug,  crushed  flat ;  two  ornamental  ends  of  pipes,  like 
the  mouth-piece  of  a  trumpet,  of  bright  yellow  bronze,  and  a  mass  of  the 
same  metal  weighing  nearly  1 J  lb."     (Proc.  S.A,,  Scot,,  vol.  i.  pp.  43,  44.) 

The  Carlingwark   caldron,    though  of  the   spheroidal  type,   is 


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266  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh.  [sess. 

slightly  different  in  shape.  It  measures  26  inches  in  diameter 
across  the  mouth,  the  sides  being  straight,  but  bulging  out  to 
the  extent  of  1  inch  above  the  rounded  and  somewhat  flattened 
bottom.  When  dredged  up  it  contained  a  number  of  iron  tools 
and  other  objects  —  axes,  hammers,  staples,  rings,  a  file,  a  saw, 
a  bridle-bit,  a  tripod,  portions  of  chain  mail,  a  bronze  vessel, 
green  glass,  etc.  (Ibid.,  vol.  vii.  pp.  7,  10.)  One  or  two  other 
spheroidal  caldrons  have  been  found  in  Scotland,  but  not  being 
associated  with  objects  which  furnish  any  chronological  data 
bearing  on  the  problem  at  issue,  they  need  not  be  discussed 
here. 

We  now  come  to  another  series  of  caldrons  which,  though 
made  of  plates  of  thin  beaten  bronze  and  riveted  together  in  the 
same  way  as  that  found  in  the  Kincardine  Moss,  differ  from 
it  in  having  a  bucket-like  shape  and  a  flat  bottom.  A  caldron 
of  this  description  (fig.  4)  was  discovered,  some  two  generations 
ago,  in  the  north-west  comer  of  Flanders  Moss,  on  the  Cardross 
estate,  "in  what  had  always  been  considered  to  be  a  Roman 
camp."  This  vessel,  hitherto  unique  among  Scottish  antiquities, 
was  exhibited  at  a  meeting  of  the  Society  of  Antiquaries  of 
Scotland  on  9th  January  1888  by  H.  D.  Erskine,  Esq.  of  Cardross, 
and  a  full  description  of  it  by  Dr  Joseph  Anderson  is  inscribed 
in  their  Proceedings  for  that  year.  It  measures  19  inches  in 
height,  10  inches  in  diameter  at  the  base,  and  14  inches  at 
the  mouth,  widening  to  16  inches  at  the  shoulder.  Two  large 
rings  for  suspension,  passing  through  ornamental  loops,  are  attached 
to  the  inside  of  the  lip.  Although  this  is  the  only  specimen 
known  to  have  been  found  north  of  the  Tweed,  several  have 
been  met  with  in  different  parts  of  the  British  Isles,  especially 
in  Ireland.  The  conjunction  of  both  types  of  caldrons  —  the 
spheroidal  and  bucket-shaped — in  the  Dowris  and  Heathery  Bum 
Cave  bronze  hoards  shows  that  they  were  contemporary  in  Britain 
at  the  close  of  the  Bronze  Age. 

The  foreign  models,  from  which  both  these  types  of  British 
and  Irish  caldrons  are  derivatives,  became  first  recognised  among 
the  grave  goods  of  an  early  Iron  Age  cemetery  at  Hallstatt 
(Austria),  which  dates  from  about  the  eighth  to  the  second  century 
BjC.      These  Hallstatt  relics  showed  that  the  people  of   the  dis- 


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1903—4.]  Date  of  Upheaval  of  Raised  Beaches  in  Scotland.    267 

trict  had  acquired  the  art  of  making  thin  plates  of  beaten 
bronze,  as  vessels  of  that  material  analogous  to  the  British  cal- 
drons just  described  were  among  them.  They  differed,  however, 
from  tlie  British  types,  inasmuch  as  the  spheroidal  forms  on  the 


Fio.  4.— Bronze  Caldron  (19  inches  in  height)  found  at  Cardross. 

Continent  had  no  suspension  rings,  but  only  handles  riveted  to 
their  sides,  while  the  buckets  had  generally  bow  handles  like 
those  of  our  common  water-pails.  As  this  Hallstatt  civilisation 
spread  westwards  in  Europe,  it  gathered  so  many  new  ideas  in 
France  and  Switzerland  that  it  became   necessary  to  distinguish 


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268  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinbicrgh.  [hess. 

its  art  and  industrial  products  in  these  countries  under  the 
designation  of  La  T^ne  civilisation — a  name  derived  from  the 
shallow  outlet  of  Lake  Neuchatel,  where  stood  the  Helvetian 
oppidum  which  yielded  its  most  characteristic  relics.  That  both, 
these  culture  streams  had  reached  our  shores  is  proved  by  the 
discovery  in  Britain  and  Ireland  of  a  number  of  objects  whose 
origin  can  be  clearly  traced  to  prototypes  in  Hallstatt  and  La 
Tfene.  But  our  insular  artists,  in  the  process  of  imitation,  so 
handled  their  materials  as  to  give  their  works  a  sufiSciently 
distinctive  character  to  differentiate  them  from  their  original 
models,  and  hence  originated  the  style  of  art  known  as  *Late 
Celtic'  Wlien  the  Romans  took  possession  of  Britain  in  the 
first  century  a.d.,  this  native  art  was  in  a  highly  flourishing 
condition,  but  its  further  development  in  the  southern  portion 
of  the  island  was  cut  short  by  the  introduction  of  the  civilisation 
of  the  conquerors.  How  long  it  was  in  existence  previous  to 
this  event  it  is  difficult  to  say,  but  it  is  safe  to  assume  that 
some  of  its  foreign  prototypes  reached  the  British  Isles  some 
three  or  four  centuries  before  the  Christian  era — a  period  which, 
however,  may  be  equated  with  the  early  Iron  Age  of  Central 
Europe.  The  presence  of  both  the  spheroidal  and  conical  caldrons 
in  Britain  and  Ireland  during  the  late  Bronze  Age  shows  that 
their  importation  into  or  development  in  these  countries  was 
altogether  independent  of  Roman  influence.  I  am  unable  to 
agree  with  the  general  opinion  that  all  these  caldrons  are  of 
native  origin,  although  undoubtedly  such  vessels  were  made 
at  home.  We  are  told  in  the  Tripartite  Life  of  St  Partick 
that  the  saint,  when  a  boy  in  slavery  in  Ireland,  was  sold  to 
some  mariners  at  the  mouth  of  the  Boyne  for  two  caldrons  of 
bronze;  also  that  Daire  gave  him  an  aerieum  mirabilem  trans- 
marinum,  i.e.  "  a  wonderful  brazen  caldron  from  over  the  sea  " 
(Joice,  Social  History  of  Irelandj  vol.  ii.  p.  124).  At  any  rate 
the  most  artistic  specimens — in  which  category  that  found  in  the 
Kincardine  Moss  must  be  reckoned — were  not  only  prior  to  the 
Roman  occupation,  but  probably  earlier  than  the  most  flourishing 
period  of  Late  Celtic  art. 

In  corroboration  of  these  views  it  may  be  observed  that  among 
the  antiquities  found  in  Oppidum  La  Tene  were  about  a  dozen 


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1903-4.]  DcUe  of  Upheaval  of  Raised  Beaches  in  Scotland.    269 

caldrons,  including  both  the  spheroidal  and  conical  types.  The 
former  were  always  constructed  on  a  uniform  plan,  the  special 
feature  of  which  was  a  lower  rounded  portion  made  of  thin 
bronze,  and  an  upper  band  of  iron  to  which  the  lower  was 
riveted,  and  to  which  also  were  fastened  two  large  suspension 
rings.     (See  Gross,  Oppidum  Helvhte^  p.  45  and  pi.  xiii.) 

It  will  be  remembered  that  one  of  the  Cockburnspath  caldrons 

was  supposed  to  have  had  its  mouth  strengthened  by  an  iron  band. 

Similar  caldrons  made  of  iron  have  been  found  in  Ireland,  two 

being  among  the  collection  of  relics  from  the  Lisnacroghera  cran- 

nog,  which  also  contained  a  number  of  Late  Celtic  objects  {Lake 

Ihcellinys  of  Europe^  p.  386).     It  would  thus  appear  that  there 

was  an  evolutionary  sequence  in  the  manufacture  of  these  caldrons 

in  the  British  Isles :  first,  those  made  of  bronze ;  second,  those 

made  of  bronze  and  iron;  and  third,  those  made  exclusively  of 

iron.     On  the  Coutinent,  caldrons  were  generally  found  associated 

with  sepulchral  remains,  except   those  from  Oppidum  La  T^ne, 

but  in  the  British  Isles  they  were  undoubtedly  used  for  culinary 

purposes.     In  protohistoric  times  in  Ireland  they  were  so  highly 

prized  that  they  are  often  referred  to  as  heirlooms  in  families,  and 

as  forming  part  of  the  special  property  of  kings.     Tradition  tells 

us  that  among  the  treasures  brought  to  that  country  by  the  Tuatha 

De  l)anoan  was  the  Coire  an  DaghdhOy  or  Magic  Caldron.     On 

these  grounds  I  see  no  reason  why  the  Kincardine  caldron,  though 

belonging  to  an  earlier  date,  should  not  have  been  used  as  a  Roman 

camp-kettle;  and  the  association  of  the  Cardross  bucket  with  a 

military  camp,  traditionally  believed  to  be  Roman,  lends  additional 

support  to  this  view.     The  general  argument  on  this  phase  of  the 

subject  may  be  thus  briefly  stated : — The  finding  of  bronze  caldrons 

of  pre-Roman  types,  and  of  a  wooden  roadway,  presumably  of 

Roman  construction,  in  association  with  the  debris  of  great  forest 

trees,  some  of  which  showed  over  300  ring-growths,  all  buried 

beneath  a  bed  of  peat  from  8  to  14  feet  thick,  affords  something 

more  than  presumptive  evidence  that  the  site  of  this  forest  had 

become  dry  land  at  least  some  centuries  before  the  Christian  era. 

But  before  attempting  to  assign  a  more  precise  date  to  this 
upheaval,  it  is  desirable  to  know  something  of  the  terrestrial  move- 
ment which  caused  it,  especially  as  to  the  rate  of  its  action.     Was 


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270  ProceediTtgs  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh,  [sess. 

the  elevation  effected  suddenly,  or  in  a  few  years,  or  in  a  few  or  many 
centuries?  From  what  I  can  gather  of  the  history  of  land  oscilla- 
tions in  other  parts  of  the  world,  the  probability  is  that  it  was  a 
very  slow  process,  so  much  so  that  its  progressive  littoral  changes 
were  too  small  to  be  appreciated  during  the  ordinary  lifetime  of  an 
observer.  If  that  be  the  case,  it  follows  that  there  is  a  correspond- 
ing difference  in  the  dates  when  the  shallower  and  deeper  portions 
of  the  sea-bottom  reached  the  surface.  We  have  already  seen  that 
the  upheaval  must  have  l^een  practically  completed  in  the  vicinity 
of  Drip  Bridge  before  the  wooden  roadway  was  laid  down,  the 
carse  lands  there  being  only  a  few  feet  above  present  high-water 
mark.  Hence  the  chronological  value  of  antiquarian  relics  found 
within  the  zone  of  the  2 5 -feet  raised  beaches  depends  to  some 
extent  on  their  position  above  sea-level.  There  are  several  recent 
discoveries  which  help  to  elucidate  this  point,  one  of  the  most 
instructive  being  a  Bronze  Age  cemetery  near  Joppa,  the  situation 
of  which  is  thus  described  by  Mr  W.  Lowson,  F.S.A.Scot. : — 

*•  In  the  beginning  of  December  last  (1881)  workmen  b^an  to  excavate 
a  piece  of  ground,  little  more  than  an  acre  in  extent,  lying  between 
Magdalen  Chemical  Works  and  Eastfield  Cottages,  Joppa,  on  the  north 
side  of  the  road  from  Edinburgh  to  Musselburgh.  The  level  of  the 
ground  is  about  12  to  14  feet  alx)ve  high-water  mark.  On  the  top  was 
ordinary  soil,  and  beneath  that  a  layer  of  sea-sand  from  4  to  8  feet  thick, 
and  beneath  tliat  gravel.  On  the  21bt  January  last  I  learned  from  the 
person  who  had  feued  the  ground  that  in  the  course  of  removing  the  sand 
the  workmen  had  discovered  a  large  cinerary  urn,  filled  with  calcined 
human  bones."  *  Subsequently,  six  other  urns,  varying  in  size,  and  all 
contained  in  stone  cists,  were  recovered  from  the  same  locality.  Besides, 
there  were  two  or  three  cists  without  urns,  and  one  with  a  skeleton.  All 
these  intenuents  were  from  4  to  6  feet  below  the  surface  of  the  ground, 
and  about  3  feel  down  on  the  bed  of  sand.  "  The  piece  of  ground,"  writes 
Mr  Lowson,  "  in  which  these  remains  were  found  lies  along  the  sea-shore, 
and  is  now  faced  with  heavy  stones  towards  the  sea  ;  but  I  saw  an  old 
man  in  Fisherrow  who  remembers  that  he  used  to  dig  out  sandmartins' 
nests  in  tliat  bank  Ijefore  the  stones  were  put  there.  He  had  seen  similar 
urns  taken  out  in  his  boyhood." 

These  facts  conclusively  prove  that  the  sea  had  retreated  to 
close  upon  its  present  limits  before  these  interments  had  taken 
place.  For  if  the  surface  of  this  sandy  beach  is  12  to  14  feet 
above  high-water  mark,  and  the  graves  from  4  to  6  feet  in  depth, 

*  Fi'oc.  S.A.  Scot.,  vol.  xvi.  p.  419. 


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1903-4.]  Date  of  Uplieaval  of  Raised  Beaches  in  Scotland,    271 

it  is  evident  that  the  sea-level  could  not  have  been  much  more 
than  8  feet  higher  when  the  interment  took  place,  without 
occasionally  submerging  and  damaging  the  cemetery.  Unless  the 
high-tide  limits  were  several  feet  lower,  it  is  not  likely  that 
people  who  paid  such  respect  to  their  dead  would  select  an 
exposed  beach  as  the  final  resting-place  of  their  friends. 

The  hypothesis  that  the  formation  of  the  25-feet  raised  beach 
on  the  west  of  Scotland  was  not  completed  till  about  the  beginning 
of  the  Bronze  Age  was  first  suggested  to  me  some  years  ago  by  the 
discovery  of  five  bronze  axes  of  the  flat  type  (fig.  5),  while  work- 


FiG.  5. — Five  Bronze  Celts  found  together  at  the  '*  Maidens," 
Ayrshire.    (^). 

men  were  excavating  the  foundations  of  buildings  on  the  sea-shore 
near  Culzean  Castle.  These  axes — which  were  bound  together  by  a 
strong  bronze  wire,  and  had  the  remarkable  peculiarity  of  being 
graduated  in  size — evidently  formed  the  *kit  of  tools*  of  a 
Bronze  Age  workman.  They  were  lying  in  a  crevice  beneath  a 
ledge  of  rock,  against  which  were  heai)ed  up  a  few  feet  of  gravel. 
The  spot  was  about  100  yards  from  the  sea-shore,  and  25  feet 
above  present  high- water  mark.  In  recording  the  discovery  {Pror, 
S.A,  Scot,  vol.  xvii.  p.  436),  I  suggested,  as  an  explanation  of 


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272  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh,  [i 

the  phenomena,  that  the  rocky  ledge  under  which  the  axes  had 
been  deposited,  apparently  for  temporary  concealment,  was  at  that 
time  open  towards  the  shore,  and  that  subsequently,  during  a 
storm,  the  crevice  had  been  covered  over  with  coarse  sea-gravel. 
It  does  not  appear  that  the  owner,  when  finally  parting  with  his 
kit  of  tools,  suspected  any  danger  frum  the  proximity  of  the  sea ; 
and  hence  there  is  some  ground  for  supposing  that  the  ordinary 
high  tides  were  not  wont  to  reach  the  spot.  Now,  had  the 
relative  level  of  sea  and  land  been  the  same  then  as  now,  a 
storm  could  hardly  account  for  their  being  covered  over  with 
sea-gravel.  It  is  not,  therefore,  unreasonable  to  suppose  that  the 
upheaval  had  already,  i.e,  at  the  beginning  of  the  Bronze  Age, 
made  considerable  progress,  for  these  axes  are  among  the  earliest 
objects  of  that  period  known  in  Scotland. 

In  conclusion,  I  have  only  to  express  the  opinion  that  the  facts 
and  arguments  here  advanced  warrant  us  in  assigning  the  upheaval 
which  caused  the  25-feet  raised  beaches  of  Central  Scotland  to  a 
more  restricted  chronological  range  than  that  expressed  in  my 
former  theory  on  the  subject,  viz.,  "  that  it  was  subsequent  to  the 
appearance  of  man  in  the  district,  but  prior  to  its  occupation  by 
the  Romans."  The  additional  evidence  points  to  the  well-founded 
inference  that  the  process  of  elevation  had  been  virtually  com- 
pleted about  the  beginning  of  the  Bronze  Age.  When  it  com- 
menced there  is  little  evidence  to  show,  beyond  the  fact  that  it 
was  a  considerable  time  posterior  to  the  stranding  of  the  school  of 
whales  on  the  tidal  shore  of  the  shallow  sea  which  then  covered 
the  carse  lands  to  the  west  of  Stirling. 


{Issued  separately  June  18,  1904.) 


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To  prevent  delay,  authors  residing  abroad  should   appoint   some   one 
residing  in  this  country  to  correct  their  proofs. 

4.  Additions  to  a  Paper  after  it  has  been  finally  handed  in  for 
publication,  if  accepted  by  the  Council,  will  be  treated  and  dated  as 
separate  communications,  and  may,  or  may  not,  be  printed  immediately 
after  the  original  paper. 

5.  Brief  Abstracts  op  Transactions  Papers  will  be  published  in 
the  Proceedings,  provided  they  are  sent  along  with  the  original  paper. 

6.  Separate  Issue  of  Reprints;  Author's  Free  and  Additional 
CrOPiES. — As  soon  as  the  final  revise  of  a  Transactions  paper  has  been 
returned,  or  as  soon  as  the  sheet  in  which  the  last  part  of  a  Proceedings 
paper  appears  is  ready  for  press,  a  certain  number  of  separate  copies  or 
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publication  will  be  printed  on  each  paper. 

The  author  receives  fifty  of  these  reprints  free,  and  may  have  any 
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the  author  should,  immediately  after  receiving  his  first  proof,  notify 
to  the  printer  the  number  of  additional  copies  required. 

7.  Index  Slips. — In  order  to  facilitate  the  compilation  of  Subject 
Indices,  and  to  secure  that  due  attention  to  the  important  points  in  a 
paper  shall  be  given  in  General  Catalogues  of  Scientific  Literature  and 
in  Abstracts  by  Periodicals,  every  author  is  requested  to  return  to  the 
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indices  will  be  edited  by  the  Secretary,  and  incorporated  in  Separate 
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Transactions. 


MODEL  INDEX. 

Schafer,  E.  A.— On  the  Existence  within  the  Liver  Cells  of  Channels  which  can 
be  directly  injected  from  the  Blood-vessels.     Proc.  Roy.  Soc.  Edin.,  vol.       ^ 
1902,  pp. 
Cells,  Liver, — Intra-cellular  Canaliculi  in. 

E.  A  Schafer.    Proc.  Roy.  Soc.  Edin.,  vol.        ,  1902,  pp. 
Liver, — Injection  within  Cells  of. 

E.  A.  Schafer.     Proc.  Roy.  Soc.  Edin.,  vol.         ,  1902,  pp. 


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iv  CONTENTS. 

PAGK 

On  the  Date  of  the  Upheaval  which  caused   the  25-feet 
Raised    Beaches    in    Central   Scotland.      £7   Kobrrt 
MuNRO,  M.A.,  M.D.,  LL.D.,    ....       242 
{Issued  separately  June  18,  1904.) 


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PROCEEDINGS 


OF  THE 


ROYAL  SOCIETY  OF  EDINBURGH. 

SESSION  1903-4. 


No.  IV.]  VOL.    XXV.  [Pp.  273-336. 


CONTENTS. 

PAGE 

The  Complete  Solution  of  the  Diflferential  Equation  of  J^y 
By  the  Rev.  F.  H.  Jackson,  H.M.S.  "Irresistible." 
Communicated  by  Dr  Wm.  Peddib,      .  .  .       273 

{Issued  separately  Att^ist  16,  1904.) 

A  Differentiating   Machine.      By   J.   Erskine    Murray, 

D.Sc., 277 

(Issi^  separately  Augtcst  16,  1904.) 

On  the  Thermal  Expansion  of  Dilute  Solutions  of  certain 
Hydroxides.  By  George  A.  Carse,  M.A.,  B.Sc. 
Communicated  by  Professor  MacGregor,         .  .       281 

(Issued  separately  Auifust  15,  1904.) 

[Continusd  on  page  iv  of  Cover. 

^EDINBURGH: 
Pttblishbd  by  ROBERT  GRANT  &  SON,  107  Princes  Street,  and 
WILLIAMS  &  NORGATE,  14  Hbnbietta.  Street,  Covent  Garden,  London. 

MDCCCCIV. 

Price  Four  Shillings. 


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KEGULATIONS  REGARDING  THE  PUBLICATION  OF 
PAPERS  IN  THE  PROCEEDINGS  AND  TRANS- 
ACTIONS OF  THE  SOCIETY. 

Thb  Council  beg  to  direct  the  attention  of  authors  of  communications  to 
the  Society  to  the  following  Regulations,  which  have  been  drawn  up  in 
order  to  accelerate  the  publication  of  the  Proceedings  and  Transactions, 
and  to  utilise  as  widely  and  as  fairly  as  possible  the  funds  which  the 
Society  devotes  to  the  publication  of  Scientific  and  Literary  Researches. 

1.  Manuscript  of  Papers. — ^As  soon  as  any  paper  has  been  passed 
for  publication,  either  in  its  original  or  in  any  altered  form,  and  has  been 
made  ready  for  publication  by  the  author,  it  is  sent  to  the  printer, 
whether  it  has  been  read  or  not. 

The  '  copy '  should  be  written  on  large  sheets  of  paper,  on  one  side 
only,  and  the  pages  should  be  clearly  numbered.  The  MS.  must  be 
easily  legible,  preferably  typewritten,  and  must  be  absolutely  in  its  final 
form  for  printing ;  so  that  corrections  in  proof  shall  be  as  few  as  possible, 
and  shall  not  cause  overrunning  in  the  lines  or  pages  of  the  proof.  All 
tables  of  contents,  references  to  plates  or  illustrations  in  the  text,  etc, 
must  be  in  their  proper  places,  with  the  page  numbers  left  blank ;  and 
spaces  must  be  indicated  for  the  insertion  of  illustrations  that  are  to 
appear  in  the  text. 

2.  Illustrations. — All  illustrations  must  be  drawn  in  a  form  im- 
mediately suitable  for  reproduction;  and  such  illustrations  as  can  be 
reproduced  by  photographic  processes  should,  so  far  as  possible,  be 
preferred.  Drawings  to  be  reproduced  as  line  blocks  should  be  made 
with  Indian  ink  (deadened  with  yellow  if  of  bluish  tone),  preferably  on 
fine  white  bristol  board,  free  from  folds  or  creases ;  smooth,  clean  lines 
ot  sharp  dots,  but  no  washes  or  colours  should  be  used.  If  the  drawings 
are  done  on  a  large  scale,  to  be  afterwards  reduced  by  photography,  any 
lettering  or  other  legend  must  be  on  a  corresponding  scale. 

If  an  author  finds  it  inconvenient  to  furnish  such  drawings,  the  Society 
will  have  the  figures  re-drawn  at  his  expense ;  but  this  will  cause  delay. 

When  the  illustrations  are  to  form  plates,  a  scheme  for  the  arrange- 
ment of  the  figures  (in  quarto  plates  for  the  Transactions,  in  octavo  for 
the  Proceedings)  must  be  given,  and  numbering  and  lettering  indicated. 

3.  Proofs. — In  general,  a  first  proof  and  a  revise  of  each  paper  will 
be  sent  to  the  author,  whose  address  should  be  indicated  on  the  MS. 
If  further  proofs  are  required,  owing  to  corrections  or  alterations  for 
which  the  printer  is  not  responsible,  the  expense  of  such  proofs  and 
corrections  will  be  charged  against  the  author. 

All  proofs  must,  if  possible,  be  returned  within  one  week,  addressed  to 
The  Secretary,  Royal  Society^  Mound,  Edinburgh,  and  not  to  the  printer. 

Continued  on  page  iii  qf  Cover, 


,Coo^V 


.If 

1803-4.]     Solution  of  the  Differential  Equation  of  J^^j .  273 


Tbe  Ck>mplete  Solution  of  the  Differenticd  Bquation  of 
Jf„j.  By  the  Rev.  P.  H.  Jackson,  H.M.S.  "Irresistible.*' 
Communicaied  by  Dr  Wm.  Peddie. 

(MvS.  received  April  28,  1904.     Read  July  4,  1904.) 

In  connection  with  the  function  J[nj,  it  may  be  of  interest 
to  give  briefly  the  complete  solution  of  the  differential  equation 
satisfied  by  the  function  Jfnj .  The  method  of  Frobenius  will  be 
employed.     Consider  the  differential  equation 

^■y'   {i-H-[-.ii."/"V) 


in  which 


r  1    P'-^ 


If  j;  =  1,  the  equation  reduces  to 

xf  +x/'  -^-i^-v?)/  =  0, 

which  is  Bessel's  equation  for  functions  of  order  n . 
Substituting  an  expression 

in  the  equation  (a) ,  we  have  an  indicial  equation 

[a  +  n][a-»]  =  0, 
PBGC.  BOY.  SOC.  BDIN. — VOL.  XXV.  18 


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274  Froceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinbwrgh,  [i 

and  an  indicial  function 

/r  a:[a+2i 

''"[a-n  +  2][a  +  n+2][a-n  +  4][a+n  +  4]-.   J 
The  principal  roots  of  the  indicial  equation  are 


a=  +«,    a=»  — n. 


If  n  be  not  an  integer,  the  corresponding  integrals  are  J,^,  and 
Jem  (^)  =  [2]-r^([n'+  i])  1  ""        [2][2n  +  2]  ^  *  *    I 

If  n  =  0  these  integrals  are  identical,  while  if  n  be  an  integer, 
one  or  other  becomes  ineffective  according  as  »  is  positive  or 
negative.  In  these  cases,  then,  it  is  necessary  to  form  a  second 
distinct  and  effective  integral  corresponding  to  Hankel's  solution 
of  Bessers  equation. 

When  a  is  integral,  we  write  * 

/W  =  C  {  [a  +  2»]-[«]  }   {  [a  +  2«]-[-«]  I 


[ 


,  ,^ a^a+21 

^*""[a-n  +  2][a  +  7i  +  2]+  ... 


..-(-!)".,  "•*■"-" 


'rj({[a+2r]-[»]}{[a+2r]-[-«]}J 
+  ELt.+i!«]_  |[a  +  2»+2]  -fn]l  I  [o  +  2«  +  2]-[-n]  I 

] 

=  0)1  +  0)2.  -■ 

*  Gf.  Forsyth,  Th$<yry  of  Differential  Equatiom^  vol.  iii.  pp.  101,  102. 


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1908-4.]     Solution  of  the  Diff&remiiaX  Equation  of  J^^^ .  275 

From 

we  obtain 

(«>,).=  -„  =   0 (1) 

(»,).=  .„  =    [2]"^.([n+l])EJ,„,(*) (2) 

n-1 
Iog_p    ^^_i^r   [2n] 

r=l 


>A=-n         ^p-l  2l}     ^^^^[2]  [4] . .  [2r]  •  [2  -  2n] . . .  [2r -  27i] 


a;I«r-nj(3) 


pn+2r^n+2r) 


(2)»+r 


-  E^l^<  -  ^>  i  [2]  +  [4]  +  •  •  •  •  •*•  [2r]  ■"  [2«  + 2]  +  ■ 

r=l 

■■■■^[2»  +  2r]/[r]![w  +  r]!(2),(2)n+r       '     "     ^' 

IfwegiveCthevalue-<^).Lz^1UthatE  =  (2^^ 
or  what  is  equivalent 


E= 


[2]»-ii;([„+i]) 


we  obtain  an  integral  from  (3)  and  (4)  which  may  be  termed 
Wj  +  Wj .     If  ^  =  1  ,  this  integral  reduces  to  that  given  on  p.  102, 
vol  iii.,  Forsyth's  Theory  of  Differential  Equations, 
In  the  case  when  n  =  0 ,  the  integral  is 


/=  <J,o,(P, «)  log ar  -  c^  {  ?^  +  ||J  + . . . 
2p2«  \  d^] 


These  functions  satisfy  the  same  recurrence  equations  as  the 


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276  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh,         [i 

function  Jj^j  given  in  the  Transactions  of  the  Society,  vol.  xli., 
part  i.,  Nos.  (1)  and  (6).  The  expression  for  IJ([ar])  given  on 
p.   105,  No.  6,  vol.  xli.,  should  be 

The  class  of  differential  equations  integrable  by  Bessel's  functions, 
and  discussed  by  Lommel  in  vol.  xiv.,  Mathematische  Annaleny 
may  without  difficulty  be  formally  extended  in  the  same  way  that 
EesseFs  equation  and  its  solutions  have  been  extended  in  the 
above  work. 


(Isstud  separately  August  16,  1904.) 


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1903-4.]    J.  Erskine  Murray  oii  a  Differentiating  Machine,  277 


A  Differentiating  Machine.     By  J.  Erskine  Murray,  D.Sc. 

(Read  March  21,  1904.     MS.  received  May  28,  1904.) 

It  was  pointed  out  to  me  a  few  months  ago,  by  my  friend 
Professor  W.  H.  Heaton,  that  our  knowledge  of  the  laws  of  physical 
variations  might  be  greatly  increased  if  their  study  were  facili- 
tated by  the  invention  of  a  machine  which  would  automatically 
deduce  the  rate  of  change  of  a  function  from  the  curve  represent- 
ing that  function.  In  cases  where  the  physical  law  is  already 
known,  and  is  expressible  in  terms  of  known  mathematical 
quantities,  such  a  machine  is  not  essential,  though  it  provides  an 
excellent  illustration  of  mathematical  laws ;  there  is,  however,  a 
vast  and  ever-increasing  mass  of  numerical  results  awaiting 
discussion  and  co-ordination,  and  it  is  in  reducing  these  to  law 
and  order  that  the  differentiator  should  prove  a  useful  tool.  As 
instances  of  a  few  cases  in  which  rates  of  change  are  of  the  first 
importance,  I  may  mention  the  following : — 

(1)  Meteorological  observations  of  Temperature,  Pressure, 
Humidity  and  Rainfall. 

(2)  Terrestrial  Magnetic  records. 

(3)  Experimental  results  in  Physics  and  Chemistry  which 
involve  changes,  whether  in  time  or  space.  The  determination  of 
thermal  conductivity  by  Forbes'  method  is  an  example. 

(4)  Statistics  of  Population,  Mortality,  and  Migration. 

(5)  Statistics  of  Wages,  Prices,  and  Commerce. 

(6)  Medical  records. 

(7)  Engineering  calculations,  such  as  the  deduction  of  Tractive 
Force  from  a  Time  and  Space  or  Time  and  Velocity  diagram. 

Up  to  the  present  all  determinations  of  rates  of  change  of 
quantities  like  those  above  mentioned  have  had  to  be  made  by 
laborious  arithmetical  or  graphical  methods,  involving  so  great  an 
expenditure  of  time  for  their  completion  that  but  little  has  been 
done.     The  differentiator  reduces  enormously  the  necessary  labour, 


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278  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh.  [asss. 

and  even  the  roughly  constructed  instrument  shown  will  give 
results  sufficiently  accurate  for  most  purposes. 

The  construction  of  the  diflferentiator  depends  on  the  well-known 
fact  that  if  the  values  of  a  variable  quantity  be  represented  on  a 
diagram  by  the  ordinates  of  a  curve,  its  rate  of  change,  at  any 
point  of  the  curve,  is  measured  by  the  slope  of  the  tangent  at 
that  point. 

The  machine,  then,  is  guided  by  hand  so  that  one  line  on  it 
remains  tangent  to  the  curve,  while  a  tracing  point  describes  on  a 
second  sheet  of  paper  a  curve  whose  ordinates  are  proportional  to 
the  slope  of  the  tangent.  Thus  if  y=f(x)  be  the  equation  to  the 
original  curve,  the  derived  curve  will  have  for  ordinates  the 
corresponding  values  of  d(f{x))/dx.  The  abscissae  are  the  same 
on  both  curves. 

In  order  that  a  line  may  be  tangent  to  a  curve  it  is  necessary 
that  two  consecutive  points  on  each  should  coincide.  In  practice, 
two  black  dots  on  a  piece  of  transparent  celluloid  are  used,  the 
distance  between  them  being  about  2  mm. 

The  plan  of  the  machine  is  shown  in  fig.  1.  It  consists  of 
three  parts.  Firstly,  the  large  drawing-board  A  B  C  D,  on  which 
the  original  curve  is  placed.  Fixed  to  each  long  side  of  this 
board  is  a  metal  rail,  one,  CE,  having  a  plain  surface,  and  the 
other,  D  F,  a  longitudinal  groove  of  V-shaped  section.  The  second 
part  is  a  smaller  board,  CHI,  having  three  spherical  feet,  two 
of  which  run  in  the  groove  and  the  third  on  the  plane  rail. 
This  arrangement  permits  free  motion  of  the  smaller  board  in  the 
direction  of  the  length  of  the  larger  one,  i,e.  parallel  to  the  Y 
coordinate.  The  small  board  carries  the  paper  on  which  the 
derived  curve  is  traced  by  the  machine.  Attached  to  its  edge 
are  guides,  JKLM,  which  hold  the  principal  part  of  the 
mechanism,  allowing  it  free  motion  in  a  right  and  left  line. 

This  part,  shown  in  fig.  2,  consists  of  a  frame  A  B  C  D,  at 
one  corner  of  which  is  a  pin.  A,  which  serves  as  the  vertical  axis 
about  which  the  rod  P  Q  revolves  in  a  horizontal  plane.  P  Q  has 
a  slot  in  it,  through  which  passes  the  pin  R  fixed  to  the  rod  S  T. 
S  T  is  controlled  by  guides  E  and  F,  so  that  it  can  only  move  in  a 
direction  parallel  to  0  Y. 

Below  the  arm  P  Q,  and  fixed  rigidly  to  it  below  A,  is  a  small 


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1903-4.]    J.  Erskine  Murray  on  a  Differentiating  Machine,  279 

plate  of  celluloid,  not  shown  in  the  diagram,  on  the  under  side 
of  which  are  two  dots  by  which  the  machine  is  guided  along  the 
curve.  The  line  through  the  dots  is  parallel  to  PQ.  The 
celluloid  rests  on  the  paper  ou  which  the  original  curve  is  drawn, 
thus  supporting  the  outer  end  of  the  frame  A  B  C  D. 

Since  the  distance  AV  between  the  pin  and  the  centre  line 


Fio.  1. 

of  ST  is  constant,  and  since  RY/AY  =  di/ 1 dz,  it  is  clear  that 
the  distance  II V  which  R  is  displaced  above  or  below  the  zero 
line  AV  measures  the  tangent  of  the  angle  of  slope  of  the 
curve,  i,e.  dyjdx,  A  pen  at  the  end  T  of  ST  records  the 
movements  of  R,  and  therefore  traces  a  curve  of  which  the 
ordinates  are  proportional  to  the  rate  of  change  of  the  ordinate 
of  the  original  cxirve.     It  should  be  noticed  that  the  purpose  of 


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280  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinhargh,         [i 

the  second  board  is  to  eliminate  the  Y  coordinate  of  the  original 
curve.  In  using  the  machine  the  anu  PQ  is  moved  so  that 
it  remains  tangent  to  the  original  curve,  while  the  frame  A  B  G  D 
is  moved  from  left  to  right,  and  it  and  the  smaller  board  to  and 
fro  as  may  be  necessary  in  following  the  curve. 

The  machine  shown  has  been  constructed  to  deal  with  curves  in 
which  the  tangent  of  the  angle  of  slope  does  not  exceed  5 ;  this  is 
sufficient  for  almost  all  experimental  or  observational  results,  since 


Fio.  2. 

it  is  always  possible  to  flatten  out  the  curve  by  making  the 
horizontal  scale  large  in  proportion  to  the  vertical. 

It  is,  of  course,  easy  to  obtain  the  higher  derivatives  of  the  original 
curve  by  a  simple  repetition  of  the  process  on  the  successive  curves. 

In  a  future  communication  I  hope  to  lay  before  the  Society  the 
results  of  the  study  of  a  number  of  meteorological  and  other  curves 
by  aid  of  the  differentiator. 

{Issued  separatdy  August  16,  1904.) 


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1908-4.]     Thermal  Expansion  of  Solutions  of  Hydroxides,    281 


On  the  Thermal  Bzpansion  of  Dilute  Solutions  of  certain 
Hydroxides.  By  George  A.  Carse,  M.A.,  B.Sc. 
Communicated  by  Professor  MagGrboob. 

(Read  March  21,  1904.) 

In  a  paper  communicated  to  the  Nova  Scotian  Institute  of 
Natural  Science,*  Professor  MacGregor  has  shown  that  in  the  case 
of  weak  aqueous  solutions  of  certain  hydroxides,  the  volume  of  a 
solution  is  less  than  the  volume  of  water  used  in  its  preparation. 
At  his  suggestion  I  have  investigated  the  hydroxides  of  sodium, 
barium,  and  strontium,  to  ascertain  whether  they  exhibit  this  pro- 
perty, and  how  the  excess  of  the  volume  of  solution  over  the 
volume  of  constituent  water  varies  with  the  temperature.  From  the 
observations  made,  I  have  also  determined  the  thermal  expansion 
coefficients,  and  found  how  they  vary  with  temperature  and  with 
concentration. 

Freparation  and  Determination  of  Composition  of  Solutions, 

The  substances  were  purchased  as  chemically  pure  from  E. 
Merck,  Darmstadt,  and  were  found  to  be  of  sufficient  purity,  the 
sodium  hydrate  being  tested  for  carbonate,  chloride,  and  sulphate, 
and  the  barium  and  strontium  hydrates  for  strontium  and  calcium, 
barium  and  calcium,  respectively. 

The  original  solutions  were  prepared  by  dissolving  the  substances 
in  twice-distilled  water,  and  they  were  analysed  volumetrically  by 
titration  with  acid,  phenolphthalein  or  methyl  orange  being  used 
as  an  indicator.  The  concentration  of  the  acid  had  been 
determined  by  means  of  sodium  carbonate  made  by  heating  sodium 
bicarbonate.  The  value  of  the  chemical  composition  of  any 
solution  thus  analysed  was  got  by  taking  the  mean  of  several 
determinations.  The  values  of  the  atomic  weights  used  were  those 
given  by  the  International  Atomic  Weight  Table  of  1904,  and  the 

♦  Tram.  Nov,  Scot.  Insl,  Nat.  8c. ,  7,  S68,  1889-90. 


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282  Proceedings  of  Boycd  Society  of  Edivhurgh.  [sms. 

densities  of  water  at  the  various  temperatures  those  given  by 
Landolt  and  Bornstein.* 

Other  solutions  were  made  from  those  prepared  directly  by 
mixing  measured  volumes  of  the  solutions  and  distilled  water  at 
15'  C.     The    percentage    concentration   was   then   got   from    the 

formula,  p  =  _-— —  -^.^^r-,  where  G  is  the  number  of  grams  of  salt 
VJD+  W  A 

per  c.c.  of  original  solution  at  15"*  C,  V  the  volume  of  the  solution, 
D  the  density  of  the  solution  at  15°  C,  W  the  volume  ef  water, 
and  A  the  density  of  the  water  at  15°  C.  The  volumes  were 
measured  out  by  pipettes  and  burettes  which  had  been  certified 
correct  by  the  Physikalisch-technische  Reichsanstalt,  Berlin. 

The  accuracy  aimed  at  in  the  estimation  of  the  chemical  com- 
position of  the  solutions  was  the  greatest  attainable,  and  in  the 
estimation  of  the  solutions  of  barium,  and,  to  a  lesser  degree,  of 
strontium,  the  errors  were  greater  than  in  the  case  of  the  solutions 
of  sodium.  The  so-called  "  probable  errors  "  in  the  estimation  of 
concentrations  were  found  in  no  case  to  exceed  '00003  per  gram  of 
solution. 

Detennination  of  Density. 

The  density  determinations  were  made  primarily  to  measure 
expansion  on  solution,  and  I  found  that  the  error  introduced  into 
the  measurement  of  expansion  by  the  error  in  the  concentration 
set  a  limit  to  the  density  accuracy  necessary.  It  was  found 
unnecessary  to  measure  densities  to  any  greater  degree  of  accuracy 
than  5  in  the  fifth  decimal  place.  Accordingly,  the  pyknometer 
method  of  determining  density  was  adopted. 

My  attention  was  drawn  to  a  method  devised  by  Mr  Manley  t 
of  eliminating  the  error  in  a  density  determination  by  the 
pyknometer,  due  to  a  difference  in  the  amount  of  moisture  con- 
densed on  the  glass  of  the  pyknometer  in  different  weighings. 
The  method  consists  in  using  as  a  counterpoise  a  similar,  sealed, 
pyknometer,  which  is  treated  as  regards  heating,  handling,  etc  in 
exactly  the  same  way  as  the  pyknometer  containing  the  liquid 
whose  density  is  to  be  measured.     Mr  Manley  finds  that  "  when 

*  Pkysikaliach'Chemische  Tabellen,  1894. 
t  Proe,  R,S.E.,  24,  857,  1902-8. 


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1903-4.]     Thermal  Expansion  of  Solutions  of  Hydroxides,    283 

it  is  desired  to  obtain  a  value  for  the  relative  density  of  a  water, 
which  shall  be  as  nearly  correct  as  possible  to  the  fifth  decinial 
place,  the  use  of  a  counterpoise  for  automatically  eliminating 
certain  incidental  errors  is  absolutely  essential." 

From  calculations  I  made,  based  on  a  paper  by  Dr  G.  J.  Parks  * 
"  On  the  Thickness  of  the  Liquid  Film  formed  by  Condensation  at 
the  Surface  of  a  Solid,"  it  was  found  that  had  the  pyknometer 
had  maximum  deposition  of  moisture  in  the  one  case  and  none  at 
all  in  the  other,  the  difference  between  two  weighings  of  the 
pyknometer  empty  could  not  exceed  -004  per  cent.  Parks  found 
that  the  thickness  of  the  film  of  moisture  deposited  on  the  surface 
of  the  glass  after  16  days'  exposure,  when  the  maximum  was 
attained,  amounted  to  13*4  x  10"*  cm.  This  moisture  if  all 
present  would  increase  the  weight  of  my  pyknometer  by  '0008 
gms.,  which  is  equivalent  to  -004  per  cent,  of  the  weight  of  the 
pyknometer  empty. 

The  difference  I  am  dealing  with  is  not  the  absolute  amount  of 
moisture  deposited,  but  the  change  in  the  amount  of  moisture  that 
may  occur  from  experiment  to  experiment,  and  therefore  is  much 
less  than  that  calculated  above. 

To  find  whether  it  was  necessary  to  use  a  counterpoise  or  not, 
when  I  wished  an  estimation  of  density  which  should  have  no 
greater  error  than  5  in  the  fifth  decimal  place,  I  determined  the 
specific  gravity  of  a  solution  at  various  temperatures,  both  with 
and  without  the  counterpoise. 

I  took  two  pyknometers  of  the  Sprengel-Ostwald  type,  of  the 
same  kind  of  glass  and  of  nearly  the  same  external  volume.  1 
weighed  each  one,  reducing  the  weight  to  weight  in  vacuo.  One 
of  the  pyknometers  was  then  sealed  by  closing  the  end  of  the 
tube  of  large  bore  and  melting  the  end  of  the  tube  of  small  bore 
till  it  was  almost  closed.  The  whole  pyknometer,  except  about  a 
quarter  of  an  inch  of  the  capillary  tube,  was  immersed  in  a  beaker 
of  water,  and  the  beaker  covered  with  layers  of  paper  to  prevent 
the  heat  of  the  sealing  flame  reaching  the  water.  The  pyknometer 
was  left  in  the  water  till  the  air  inside  had  reached  the  temperature 
of  the  water,  and  the  capillary  end  was  sealed  with  a  fine  small 
flame.  Knowing  the  temperature  of  the  water,  the  height  of  the 
♦  Proc,  Phys.  Soe,  Lond.,  18,  410,  1908. 


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284  ProceediTUfs  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh.  [ 

barometer  and  the  internal  volume   of  the  counterpoise,  we  can 
calculate  the  weight  of  the  air  enclosed. 

Let  w  be  the  observed  weight  of  pyknometer  with  liquid  in  it 
using  the  counterpoise,  w^,  w^  the  true  weights  of  pyknometer 
and  counterpoise  respectively  (lo^  including  the  weight  of  air 
inside  counterpoise),  I  the  true  weight  of  liquid  in  pyknometer,  v^, 
V2  the  volumes  of  air  displaced  by  pyknometer  and  counterpoise 
respectively,  A.  the  density  of  the  air  at  the  particular  temperature 
and  pressure  at  which  the  observation  is  made,  and  p  the  density 
of  the  weights ;  then 

l  =  w-\-W2-w^-  X( —  H-  v^  -  Vj). 

The  volumes  v^  and  Vg  were  determined  by  finding  the  weight 
of  water  in  the  pyknometer  at  a  given  temperature,  and  thence 
calculating  the  volume  occupied  by  the  water,  and  by  finding  the 
weight  of  the  pyknometer  empty,  and  the  density  of  the  glass,  and 
thence  getting  the  volume  of  the  glass. 

All  the  terms  on  the  right-hand  side  being  known,  we  can  find  /. 
If  the  pyknometers  have  nearly  the  same  surface,  then  the  weights 
of  moisture  on  their  surfaces  balance. 

I  now  give  my  own  experiments  with  and  without  the 
counterpoise,  showing  that  the  use  of  the  counterpoise  was  needless 
in  my  work.     The  observations  are  as  follows  : — 


Temperature 
degrees  Centigrade. 

i    Specific  Gravity  using 
1          Counterpoise. 

Specific  Gravity  not 
using  Counterpoise. 

15 

1-18566 

1 

1-18566 

20 

1-18416 

1-18418 

26 

1-18269 

1  18266 

80 

1-18174 

1-18176 

The  pyknometers  used  in  the  two  series  of  observations  given 
above  were  different,  and  each  weight  of  liquid  was  the  mean  of 
two  weighings.  The  pyknometers  were  not  left  standing  exposed 
to  the  air  for  more  than  20  minutes  (the  time  occupied  in  a 
weighing).  As  the  diflferences  (the  maximum  being  -00003)  in 
the  specific  gravity  vary  indiscriminately  on  either  side  there  is  no 


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1903-4.]     Thermal  Expansion  of  SoltUions  of  Hydroxides.    285 

indication  that  the  one  method  is  any  hetter  than  the  other  from 
my  point  of  view.     I  therefore  did  not  use  the  counterpoise. 

In  the  determinations  of  the  densities  of  the  solutions,  the 
pyknometers  weighed  about  20  grams,  and  had  a  capacity  of  about 
20  c.c.  The  pyknometers,  after  being  filled,  were  placed  in  a 
thermostat,  the  temperature  of  which  was  kept  at  15**  C,  20*  C, 
26*  C,  30*  C,  as  was  required  ;  the  bath  did  not  vary  more  than 
•04*  C.  from  the  required  temperature  during  any  experiment.  The 
stirrer  was  driven  by  an  electric  motor,  or  latterly  by  a  Heinrici 
hot-air  engine.  The  thermometer  which  gave  the  temperature  of 
the  bath  was  graduated  to  fiftieths  of  a  degree  centigrade,  and  had 
a  table  of  corrections  from  the  National  Physical  Laboratory,  Kew 
Observatory.  After  the  pyknometer  had  been  for  some  time  in 
the  bath  (the  period  varying  from  2  hours  to  20  hours,  as  the 
apparatus  was  kept  going  day  and  night),  the  meniscus  was  made 
to  coincide  with  the  mark  on  the  stem.  A  short  time  after,  if  the 
meniscus  still  coincided  with  the  mark,  the  pyknometer  was  taken 
out,  dried  with  a  cloth  and  weighed.  All  weighings  were  corrected 
for  the  buoyancy  of  the  air  by  adding  on  to  the  observed  weight 
of  the  pyknometer  the  weight  of  air  displaced  by  the  excess  of  the 
volume  of  the  pyknometer  and  liquid  over  that  of  the  weights. 

To  get  an  accuracy  of  '001  per  cent,  in  a  weighing  the 
thermometer  in  the  balance-case  should  be  read  to  '14*  C.  and 
the  barometer  to  '35  mm  The  thermometer  in  the  balance-case 
read  to  •!*  C.  and  was  correct  to  •02*'  C,  and  the  air  in  the  case 
was  kept  dry  by  means  of  sulphuric  acid.  The  barometer,  which 
had  been  corrected  at  the  National  Physical  Laboratory,  read  to 
•1  mm.  In  the  correction  for  buoyancy  the  density  of  the  air 
was  taken  from  Landolt  and  Bornstein.*  The  error  introduced 
by  taking  the  air  in  the  balance-case  as  perfectly  dry  was 
calculated  and  found  to  be  negligible. 

All  weighings  were  the  means  of  at  least  two  observations,  and 
the  deviation  of  any  weighing  from  the  mean  of  two  weighings 
was  found  not  to  exceed  '002  per  cent,  for  94  weighings  examined, 
thus  giving  a  rough  estimate  of  the  accuracy  in  weighing. 

The  so-called  "  probable  error "  in  the  estimations  of  density 
was  found  not  to  exceed  00002. 

*Loc.  cit. 


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286 


Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinhwrgh.  [i 


Expansion  on  Solution, 

The  volume  of  unit  mass  of  the  various  solutions  examined 
was  calculated,  and  also  the  volume  which  the  solvent  water 
contained  in  unit  mass  would  occupy  if  its  temperature  were  the 
same  as  that  of  the  solution.  The  amount  hy  which  the  volume 
of  unit  mass  of  the  solution  is  greater  or  less  than  that  of  the 
solvent  water  employed  in  its  preparation  is  the  difference  of  these 
quantities.     Knowing  the  density,  p  (gma.  per  c.c),  of  a  solution 

at  t°  C,  we  can  find  the  volume,  — ,  of  I  gm.  of  the  solution  at 

P 
that  temperature  ;  and  knowing  the  concentration  of  a  solution  (c), 
and  the  density  of  water  at  t**,  A,  we  can  find  the  volume  that 
the  water  in  1  gm.  of  solution  would  occupy  if  it  were  free,  viz., 

— ^— ;  hence  the  excess  of  the   one  volume   over  the  other 

A 

is —.J-    -.     This  may  be  called  the  expansion  on  solution. 

P  A 

The  "  probable  error "  in  the  determination  of  the  expansion  was 

found   to   be   '00004,  the  values  of  the  expansion  varying  from 

•00957  to  -00001. 

The  following  tables  give  the  results  found.     The  headings  are 

self-explanatory. 

Sodium  Hydroxide. 


Grams  of 

Volume  of 

Volume  at  t* 

substance  in 

Temp. 

Density 

1  gram  of 

C.  of  water  in 

Expansion 

100  grams 

t'C. 

grams  per  c.c. 

Solution  at 

1  gram  Solu- 

V-Vcc 

Solution. 

t**  C.  (V  C.C.). 

tion  (V  C.C.). 

16-3829 

15 

1-18468 

•84415 

•83740 

-h  -00675 

J 

20 

1-18208 

•84596 

•83815 

-h  -00781 

1? 

26 

1-17891 

•84823 

•83935 

-f  -00888 

t  y 

30 

1  17676 

-84988 

•84031 

+  -00967 

6-0785 

15 

1-06884 

•93559 

•94003 

-  -00444 

)) 

20 

1-06699 

-93721 

•94087 

-  00366 

26 

1-06452 

•93938 

•94222 

-  -00284 

^ 

30 

1-06294 

•94078 

•94829 

-•00261 

3-1805 

15 

1-03532 

-96589 

•96954 

-  -00866 

20 

1  03373 

•96737 

•97041 

-  -00804 

J 

26 

1-03180 

■96918 

-97179 

-  -00261 

30 

1  -03074 

•97045 

•97290 

-  -00245 

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1908-4.]     Thermal  Expansion  of  Solutions  of  Hydroxides.    287 

It  thus  appears  that  for  solutions  of  this  hydrate  below  a 
certain  dilution  the  expansion  is  negative,  and  that  this  negative 
expcmsion  becomes  less  numerically  with  rise  of  temperature,  i,e,  it 
increases  algebraically  with  the  temperature,  just  as  is  the  case 
when  the  expansion  is  positive  (see  fig.  2). 

The  following  are  curves  for  sodium  hydroxide  showing 
expansion  on  solution  plotted  against  concentration  for  the  various 
temperatures. 

The  solution  exhibiting  the  maximum  contraction  at  15*  C.  is 

Sodium  Hydroxide. 


O 


o  s  ./o  /6" 

Fig.  1. 

one  containing  6*07  per  cent,  of  the  hydroxide,  while  the  corre- 
sponding value  deduced  by  Professor  MacGregor  is  6  per  cent. 
The  maximum  contraction,  as  deduced  from  the  above  graph,  is 
•0044  c.c,  while  that  given  by  Professor  MacGregor  is  '0045.  The 
crosses  on  the  diagram  indicate  values  taken  from  Professor 
MacGregor's  table.  It  is  also  to  be  noted  that  contraction  decreases 
with  rise   of   temperature,  and   that   the   maximum  contraction- 


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288  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Hdinburgh,  [ 


point  slowly  shifts  towards  the  concentration  origin  with  rise  of 
temperature. 

Barium  Hydroxide, 


Grams  of 
substance  in  Temp. 
100  grams  I  t"  C. 
Solution.    I 


Density 
grams  per  c.c. 


Volume  of     Volume  at  t*  i 

1  gram  of  C.  of  water  in  '  Expansion 
Solution  at  '  1  gram  Solu-  '  V-V  cc. 
t°C.(Vc.c).!tion(V'cc.).' 


•89387 


•08212 


•04303 


1 


I- 


15 
20 
26 
30 
15 
20 
26 
30 
16 
20 
26 
30 


1-01079 

1  00998 

1  00847 

1-00721 

1-00000 

•99913 

■99766 

•99656 

-99957 

-99870 

•99728 

•99611 


•98933 

•99010 

•99160 

'99285 

1-00000 

1^00087 

1-00234 

1-00345 

1  00043 

1-00130 

1-00273 

1-00390 


•99192 

•99281 

•99423 

•99537 

1  00005 

1^00095 

1-00238 

1  00352 

1  00044 

1-00134 

1-00276 

1-00392 


-  -00259 

-  -00271 

-  -00263 

-  -00252 

-  -00005 
-•00008 

-  -00004 

-  -00007 

-  -00001 

-  -00004 

-  -00008 

-  -00002 


It  thus  appears  that  all  the  solutions  of  barium  hydrate  examined 
have  a  negative  expansion.  This  hydrate  is  thus  so  far  analogous 
to  sodium  hydrate.  The  effect  of  temperature  on  the  expansion  is 
not  very  marked,  and  for  the  last  two  concentrations  the  numerical 
values  of  the  expansions  are  subject  to  considerable  variations  in 
the  fifth  decimal  place,  although  they  all  agree  in  giving  negative 
expansion  (see  fig.  2). 

Strontium  Hydroxide, 


Grams  of 

Volume  of 

Volume  at  t" 

substance  in 

Temp. 

t^a 

Density 

1  gram  of 

C.  of  water  in 

Expansion 

100  grams 

grams  per  cc. 

Solution  at 

1  gram.  Solu- 

V-V'cc. 

Solution. 

15 

1-00363 

t"C.(Vc.c.). 
-99639 

tion  (V  ca> 

-32744 

-99759 

-  -00120 

)) 

20 

1-00263 

-99738 

99848 

-  -00110 

26 

1-00114 

•99886 

•99992 

-  00106 

)) 

30 

•99996 

1  -00004 

1-00105 

-  00101 

12162 

15 

1-00072 

•99923 

-99965 

-  -00042 

)) 

20 

•99971 

1  00029 

1-00055 

-  -00026 

1) 

26 

•99831 

1-00169 

1-00197 

-  -00028 

»» 

30 

•99708 

1-00293 

1-00313 

- -00020 

•02354 

15 

-99946 

1-00054 

100063 

-  -00009 

jj 

20 

•99849 

1-00151 

1-00153 

-  -00002 

)) 

26 

•99700 

1  -00806 

1-00296 

+ -00010 

»» 

30 

•99600 

1  00432 

100411 

-f -00021 

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1903-4.]     Thermal  Expansion  of  Solutions  of  Hydroxides.    289 

Here  also  solutions  of  strontium  hydrate  exhibit  this  negative 
expansion,  and  this  negative  expansion  becomes  less  numerically 
with  rise  of  temperature,  and  in  the  case  of  the  last  solution 
examined  it  changes  from  being  a  negative  to  a  positive  expansion 
with  rise  of  temperature.  Strontium  hydrate  is  thus  analogous  to 
sodium  hydrate  (see  fig.  2). 

The  following  are  curves  exhibiting  expansion  on  solution  plotted 


U 

0 


Fig.  2. 

against  temperature  for  the  hydroxides   of   sodium,  barium,  and 
strontium. 

TJiermal  Expansion. 

Adopting  the  formula  V<  =  Vi5[l  +  a{t  -  15)  +  b{t  -  15)2  +  c(<- 15)8] 
where  V,  is  the  specific  volume  at  t**  C,  and  a,  b  and  c  are  con- 
stants, I  have  determined  by  a  modified  method  of  least  squares 
the  constants  a,  h,  c ;  the  formula  gives  the  volume  at  any 
temperature  between  15**  C.  and  20"  C.  correct  to  within  5  in  the 
fifth  decimal  place.  By  the  aid  of  the  above  formula  the  expan- 
sion coefficients,  a<  =  —  , ',  where  a,  is  the  expansion  coefficient 
Vt    df 

at  t**  C,  were  calculated. 

PROC.  ROY.  SOC.  EDIN. — VOL.  XXV.  1  9 


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290  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh.  [i 

The  following  are  the  tables  : — 

Constants  and  Goeficienis. 


Concen- 
tration. 


axlO« 


6xlO« 


cxlO» 


«« 


xlO» 


clO» 


oas 


xlO* 


0,0  >^  10=* 


Sodium  Hydrate. 

16-8829 
6  0785 
3-1805 

+  480 
+  810 
+  300 

+  000 
+  890 
+  124 

+  116    42 

-  327    31 

-  21    80 

44 
37 
81 

47 
88 
82 

Barium  Hydrate. 


'8989 
•0821 
•0430 


+  97 

+  1200 

-180 

10 

20 

29 

+  130 

+  980 

-210 

18 

21 

26 

+  148 

+  630 

-  28 

14 

20 

27 

51 
86 
88 


84 
28 
31 


Strontium  Hydrate. 


8274 

+  180 

-^340 

+  50 

18 

21 

27 

1216 

+  220 

-410 

+  380 

22 

21 

26 

•0235 

+  165 

+  600 

-  12 

16 

22 

29 

81 
85 
33 


The  expansion  coefficients,  since  they  involve  small  differences 
of  volume,  are  subject  to  large  errors  in  the  fifth  decimal  place, 
and  can  only  be  considered  as  approximate. 

The  following  curves  show  expansion  coefficient  plotted  against 

Sodium  Hydroxide. 


O  lo 

CDNwC4>l^Jl3vaJ&y4nv . 

Fio.  3. 


2.0 


concentration,  the  first  set  being  for  sodium  hydroxide  alone,  while 
the  second  set  are  for  the  three  hydroxides.     In  the  second  set 


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1908-4.]    Thermal  Expansion  of  SoltUions  of  Hydroxides,     291 

the  concentrations  and  expansion  coefficients  are  plotted  on  scales 
20  and  2  times  those  of  the  first  set  respectively. 

In  the  case  of  sodium  hydroxide  the  expansion  coefficient 
increases  with  concentration,  and  does  so  at  a  less  rapid  rate  as  the 
temperature  rises. 

The  strontium  and  barium  curves  seem  to  indicate  that  the  rate 
of  variation  of   expansion  coefficient  with  concentration  reaches 

1 

« 
1 

T 


*«oeto 

o  -5 

Fig.  4. 

stationary  values  in  the  range  considered,  hut  no  great  stress  can 
be  laid  on  this  conclusion,  because  of  the  uncertainty  caused  by  the 
large  errors  in  the  expansion  coefficient. 

The  above  experiments  were  carried  out  in  the  Natural  Philos- 
ophy Laboratory,  University  of  P^dinburgh.  I  have  to  tender  my 
best  thanks  to  Professor  MacGregor  for  the  assistance  he  has 
afforded  me  in  this  work,  both  by  way  of  suggestions  and  advice. 


{Issued  separately  August  15,  1904.) 


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292  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh.  [si 


Effect  of  Transverse  Magi^etization  on  the  Resistance  of 
Nickel  at  High  Temperatures.  By  Professor  O.  Q. 
Knott. 

(ReadJune  20th,  1904.) 

Abstract. 

In  a  previous  communication  *  it  was  pointed  out  that  the  effect 
of  transverse  magnetization  on  the  resistance  of  nickel  wire  was 
inappreciable  in  fields  below  500  C.G.S.  units,  thereby  differing 
from  the  case  of  longitudinal  magnetization,  in  which  the  effect  was 
easily  measurable  in  fields  below  20. t  The  reason  of  this  is  no 
doubt  to  be  referred  to  the  thinness  of  the  wire  in  the  direction  of 
the  magetizing  force.  To  measure  the  effect  of  transverse  magnet- 
ization it  was  necessary  to  form  a  flat  coil  and  insert  it  between 
the  poles  of  a  powerful  electro-magnet.  Considerable  difficulty 
was  experienced  in  winding  this  coil  with  interwound  asbestos  in- 
sulation, for  great  care  had  to  be  taken  that  no  part  of  the  wire 
cut  the  lines  of  force  obliquely,  otherwise  there  would  be  a  resolved 
component  of  longitudinal  effect,  which  in  certain  cases  might 
altogether  mask  the  effect  looked  for.  The  coil  used  in  the  final 
experiments  was  suitable  in  all  respects.  It  was  coiled  between 
glass  plates,  the  successive  coils  being  separated  by  threads  of 
asbestos.  Round  the  coil  another  coil  (of  Beacon  wire)  was  wound 
anti-inductively,  so  that  any  current  passing  through  it  would  have 
no  magnetic  action  upon  the  nickel  wire  inside.  By  varying  the 
current  in  this  external  coil  I  was  able  to  heat  the  nickel  to  any 
desired  temperature  up  to  400"  C.  In  any  one  expeiiment  the 
final  temperature  came  to  a  steady  state,  and  not  till  this  state  was 
reached  was  it  possible  to  begin  the  observations  on  the  resistance 
change.  This  was  measured  in  the  manner  already  described  in 
my  paper  on  the  effect  of  longitudinal  magnetization,  and  it  will 
suffice  meanwhile  to  call  attention  to  a  remarkable  result  obtained 

♦  Proc,,  vol.  xxiv.  p.  601  (1908). 
t  Trans.,  vol.  xli.  pp.  39-52  (1904). 


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1903-4.]  Prof.  Knott  on  Effect  of  Transverse  Magnetization.  293 

when  the  temperature  approached  that  at  which  nickel  ceases  to 
be  strongly  ma^etic. 

The  nature  of  the  phenomenon  is  indicated  in  the  following  table, 
which  gives  the  change  of  resistance  of  100,000  ohms  of  nickel 
wire  at  the  temperatures  shown  when  the  wire  is  subjected  to 
a  transverse  magnetic  field  of  about  3800  units. 


Temperature. 


Resistance  change 
in  Field  3800. 

Temperature. 

Resistance  change 
in  Field  3800 

750 

320'  C. 

320 

640 

330 

270 

390 

335 

170 

250 

340 

100 

190 

345 

40 

201 

350 

5? 

250             ! 

J 

10**  c. 
100 
200 
250 
290 
300 
310 


The  peculiarity  consists  in  the  marked  minimum  at  temperature 
290*  and  the  still  more  abrupt  maximum  at  temperature  320*. 
The  very  rapid  fall  oflF  to  zero  as  the  temperature  rises  from  330 
to  350  is  also  worthy  of  note.  So  limited  is  the  range  of 
temperature  within  which  these  changes  take  place,  that  the 
phenomenon  might  easily  have  escaped  notice.  It  was  fortunate 
that  in  one  of  the  earlier  series  a  temperature  very  near  the 
minimum  point  was  hit  upon.  The  peculiarity  was  at  first 
ascribed  to  the  inherently  greater  difficulties  of  making  the 
experiments  at  the  higher  temperatures  :  but  time  after  time,  by 
means  of  small  successive  changes  of  temperature  between  the 
critical  limits,  exactly  the  same  results  were  obtained.  There  can, 
therefore,  be  no  doubt  as  to  the  existence  of  a  peculiar  molecular 
change  as  the  nickel  wire  is  raised  in  temperature  from  about 
290*  to  350".  In  my  paper  on  the  eflFect  of  longitudinal 
magnetization  (see  especially  the  curves  at  the  highest  temperatures, 
p.  46,  l.c,\  a  similar  peculiarity  was  indicated.  It  was,  however, 
so  slight — being  merely  a  slight  upward  bulging  of  the  isodynamic 
curves— that  it  was  not  at  the  time  regarded  as  of  any  moment, 
but,  in  the  light  of  the  present  result,  it  can  no  longer  be  looked 
upon  as  due  to  small  errors  of  measurement. 


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294  Proceedings  of  Boyal  Society  of  Edvaburgh.         [sbss. 

In  this  connection  I  would  draw  attention  to  a  paper  published 
in  the  Philosophical  Magazine  for  June  1904,  bearing  on  a  cognate 
line  of  research.  In  that  paper  Dr  E.  P.  Harrison  shows  that 
pure  nickel  undergoes  curious  changes  of  length  as  the  temperature 
approaches  the  temperature  at  which  its  magnetic  properties  are 
lost.  This  is  strictly  analogous  to  the  behaviour  of  iron  at 
red  heat,  as  discovered  long  ago  by  Grore.  Tait  found  that 
the  thermo-electric  properties  of  iron  had  peculiarities  which 
occurred  at  this  same  temperature ;  and  that  similar  thermo- 
electric peculiarities  were  possessed  by  nickel.  He  tried,  but  un- 
successfully, to  find  a  Gore  effect  in  nickel  at  a  temperature  of 
400".  This  has  now  been  very  satisfactorily  accomplished  by  Dr 
Harrison.  It  is  possible,  however,  that  the  result  obtained  by 
Dr  Harrison  may  be  partly  due  to  variation  in  the  magnetic  strain 
caused  by  the  circular  magnetization  accompanying  the  strong 
current  used  for  keeping  the  nickel  wire  at  the  required  high 
temperature. 

As  to  the  cause  of  the  curious  effects  described  in  this  note, 
more  than  one  hypothesis  might  be  advanced,  but  it  would  be 
premature  to  attempt  any  complete  discussion  until  further  facts 
are  made  out.     These  I  hope  to  communicate  in  due  course. 


{Issued  separcOely  July  80,  1904.) 


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1908-4.]   On  Aged  J^edmms  of  Sagartia  troglodytes,  etc.     295 


Observations  on  some  Aged  Specimens  of  Sagartia 
troglodytes,  and  on  the  Duration  of  Life  in 
Coelenterates.  By  J.  H.  Ashworth,  D.Sc,  J-ecturer  in 
Invertebrate  Zoology  in  the  University  of  Edinburgh,  and 
Nelson  Annandale,  B.A.,  Deputy-wSuperintendent  of  the 
Indian  Museum,  Calcutta.  Communicated  by  Professor  J.  C. 
EwABT,  M.D.,  F.R.S. 

(MS.  i-eceived  June  10,  1904.     Read  June  20,  1904.) 

We  have,  during  the  last  two  years,  made  a  series  of  observa- 
tions upon  specimens  of  Sagartia  troglodytes  which  are  at  least 
fifty  years  old,  and  have  thought  it  worth  while  to  give  a  some- 
what detailed  account  of  these,  as,  so  far  as  we  can  ascertain,  there 
is  only  one  other  recorded  case  of  longevity  in  Coelenterates  (see 
p.  302),  and  very  few  in  the  whole  of  the  Invertebrata.* 

These  specimens  of  Sagartia  troglodytes  were  collected  by  Miss 
Anne  Nelson  (Mrs  George  Brown)  on  the  coast  of  Arran,  some  few 
years  previous  to  1862  (the  exact  date  has  not  been  recorded),  and 
were  placed  in  bell-jars  containing  sea- water.  In  1862  they  were 
transferred  to  the  care  of  Miss  Jessie  Nelson,  in  whose  possession 
they  still  remain,  and  to  whom  we  are  indebted  for  the  opportuni- 
ties of  observing  these  interesting  anemones.  Sixteen  of  the 
original  specimens  are  still  living,  so  that  they  have  lived  in 
captivity  for  about  fifty  years.  They  are  kept  in  a  bell-jar  about 
13  inches  in  diameter  and  9  in  depth.  The  original  specimens 
are  all  together  on  a  piece  of  stone,  which  bears  a  number  of  deep 
depressions  in  which  the  anemones  have  ensconced  themselves. 
These  conditions  closely  resemble  those  in  which  S.  troglo- 
dytes is  usually  found,  the  specific  name  of  this  anemone 
being  derived  from  its  favourite  habit  of  dwelling  in  holes  and 
crevices  of  the  rock.  These  specimens  have  been  under  constant 
observation  since  1862,  and  there  can  be  no  doubt  that  they  are 
the  original  ones. 

*  See  the  appendix  to  Weismann's  Essay  on  the  Dnration  of  Life,  1891, 
p.  80. 


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296  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh.  [sbsk. 

As  the  conditions  under  which  these  anemones  have  lived  for  so 
long  may  be  of  interest,  the  following  particulars  are  given.  The 
bottom  of  the  bell-jar  is  covered  with  small  rough  stones  on  which 
several  species  of  green  algae  are  growing.  On  these  rests  the 
large  stone  containing  the  cavities  in  which  the  anemones  are  fixed. 
The  sea-water  in  the  jar  (about  four  gallons)  is  changed  every  six 
or  eight  weeks,  and  is  usually  aerated  every  morning.  From  time 
to  time  a  little  fresh  water  is  atided  to  keep  the  density  of  the 
whole  constant  The  anemones  are  fed  about  once  a  month  on 
small  pieces  of  raw  lean  beef.  They  usually  reject  fish  or  mutton,* 
but  appear  to  digest  the  beef  very  thoroughly,  a  small  mass  of 
white  flocculent  matter  being  ejected  from  the  mouth  a  day  or  two 
after  feeding.  In  addition,  the  anemones  catch  and  feed  upon  the 
small  isopods  which  abound  among  the  algae  One  of  us  lately 
observed  a  specimen  seize  and  engulf  an  Actinia  mesembryanthemum 
which  had  freed  itself  from  a  neighbouring  stone  and  come  inVo 
contact  with  the  tentacles  of  the  Sagartia.  Two  days  later  the 
victim,  almost  intact,  but  quite  dead,  was  ejected.  Those  tentacles 
of  the  captor  {Saijartia)  which  had  first  touched  the  Actinia 
remained  for  some  days  dimuiished  in  size  and  opaque  in  colour, 
but  finally  recovered  their  usual  appearance.  Sagartia  trofflodytes 
is  evidently  not  immune  to  the  poison  of  Actinia  viesembryanihemum^ 
but,  so  far  as  could  be  ascertained,  only  the  tentacles  of  the  former 
suffered  from  the  effects  of  the  poison  of  the  latter.  Probably  the 
nematocysts  of  the  latter  became  inoperative  soon  after  its  capture, 
either  owing  to  the  death  of  the  Actinia  or  to  some  other  cause,  so 
that  the  internal  structures  of  the  Sagartia  remained  practically 
uninjured.  Grosvenor  {Proc.  B.S.L.,  vol.  72,  1903,  pp.  478-479) 
ascribes  the  discharge  of  nematocysts  to  osmtitic  action.  His 
experiments  show  that  the  contents  of  the  capsule  are  able  tx)  take 

•  Owing  to  the  value  of  these  aged  specimens,  we  have  not  been  able  to 
make  sufficient  experiments  upon  them  to  determine  whether  they  have  a 
sense  of  taste,  but  the  above  observations  seem  to  suggest  tbat  snch  a  sense  is 
present,  though  feebly  developed.  For  an  account  of  such  experiments  see 
O.  H.  Parker,  **Tho  Reactions  of  Metridium  to  Food  and  other  Substances," 
Bull.  Mus,  Comp,  Zod.  Harvard,  vol.  xxix.,  1896,  pp.  107-119.  Parker 
concludes  that  the  tentacles  of  this  anemone  when  stimulated  with  meat  juice 
move  so  as  to  point  to  the  mouth  ;  similar  stimulation  to  the  lips  gives  rise  to 
peristaltic  movements  in  the  stomodseum,  reversal  of  the  ciliary  action  of  the 
lips,  and  contraction  of  the  sphincter  muscle  of  the  oral  disc 


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1903-4.]    On  Aged  Specimens  of  Sagartia  troglodytes,  etc.     297 

up  liquid  from  sea-water  until,  on  the  pressure  reaching  a  certain 
amount,  the  thread  is  shot  out.  Such  discharge  would  probably 
take  place  only  in  sea-water,  or  in  some  fluid  which  differs  but 
slightly  in  density  from  sea-water.*  The  Actinia ,  on  entering  the 
ccelenteron  of  its  captor  and  becoming  surrounded  by  the  denser 
mucous  secretion  poured  out  upon  it,  would  probably  be  rendered 
innocuous,  its  nematocysts  becoming  inoperative.  Even  if  the 
mucous  secretion  merely  served  to  delay  the  discharge  of  the 
nematocysts  (as  is  almost  certain,  for  it  would  prevent  or  retard  the 
access  of  sea-water),  it  is  probable  that  the  density  of  the  fluid  in 
the  ccelenteron  (after  closure  of  the  stomodsBum)  would,  from  other 
causes,  soon  increase  to  such  an  amount  as  to  then  render  the 
discharge  of  nematocysts  impossible.  That  such  a  change  in  the 
contents  of  the  ccelenteron  does  occur  soon  after  closure  of  the 
stomodflBum  is  evident  from  the  behaviour  of  the  young  anemones 
described  below.  Then,  again,  the  mucous  secretion  which  the 
captor  forms  over  its  prey  would  also  act  as  a  shield  against  any 
nematocysts  of  the  latter  which  might  be  discharged.  We  may 
account  in  one  or  other  of  these  ways  for  the  apparently  uninjured 
condition  of  the  internal  structures  of  the  captor. 

Miss  Nelson's  specimens  of  SoAjartia  troglndytes  and  also  of 
Artinia  mesembrtjanthenium  have  been  very  prolific,  though  only  a 
small  proportion  of  the  young  produced  has  survived.  As  a  rule, 
most  of  them  disappear  within  a  week  or  two  after  birth,  some 
being  devoured  by  the  adults  of  their  own  or  other  species,  and 
the  rest  disappear  in  other  ways  not  ascertained.  Both  species 
breed  in  early  spring :  Actinia  commences  to  bring  forth  young  as 
early  as  the  beginning  of  February,  and  Sagartia  about  a  month 


*  The  fact  that  the  uematooysts  of  Hydroids  are  able  to  pass  undischarged 
through  a  portion  of  the  alimentary  canal  and  into  the  dorsal  processes  of 
jEoliSf  but  may  be  discharged  on  being  extruded  into  sea-water,  8Upi>orts  this 
view.  Again,  some  fish  appear  to  feed  with  impunity  on  anemonen  and  other 
Coelenterates,  e.g.  Peachia  hastaia  is  found  in  the  stomach  of  the  cod  (M  'Intosh, 
The  Marine  Invertebrates  and  Fishes  of  St  Andrews^  p.  37),  swarms  of  an 
Edwardsia  in  the  stomach  of  the  flounder  (p.  38),  while  VirgvZaria  mirabilis 
is  also  occasionally  seen  in  the  cod's  stomach  (p.  39).  Anemones  are  some- 
times used  on  parts  of  the  Scottish  coast  as  bait  for  cod,  and  are  found  to 
answer  this  purpose  well  (see,  for  example,  M'Intosh,  The  Resources  qf 
the  Sea^  p.  129).  Off  the  south  coast  of  Iceland  one  of  us  has  seen  the 
stomach  of  a  cod  fhll  of  specimens  of  Pennatula, 


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298  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Ediriburgh,  [ 

later.     As  a  rule,  only  a  few  young  are  extruded  at  one  time,  and 
generally  early  in  the  morning,  and  one  individual  may  repeat  this 
operation   every   morning   for   several   weeks.      The   young,    the 
majority  of  which  when  extruded  already  possess  the  first  two 
cycles  of  tentacles  (t.e.  twelve  tentacles),  are  not  expelled  with 
violence,  but  gently,  and  usually  lie  for  a  time,  with  their  tentacles 
retracted,  on   the  disc  of   the  parent.     They  are  dispersed  in  a 
manner  which  is  no  doubt  very  useful  and  effective  in  a  tidal  pool 
on  the  sea-shore.     At  or  soon  after  extrusion  the  basal   portion 
of  each  young  anemone  is  much  swollen,  owing  to  the  presence  of 
a  considerable  amount  of  fluid  in  the  coelenteron,  so  that  the  pedal 
disc  becomes  strongly  convex.     This  is  probably  due  to  the  fact 
that  the  tentacles   being   retracted  and    the   mouth   closed,    the 
products  of  metabolism  are  unable  to  escape.     In  addition  to  their 
mere  accumulation,  the  soluble  products  exert  some  osmotic  action 
which  causes  sea- water  to  diffuse  through  the  thin  body-wall  into 
the  coelenteron,  thus  strongly  inflating  the  basal  portion  of  the 
young  animal.     Owing  to  this  Imsal  inflation  and  the  retraction 
of  the  oral  end  the  young  anemone  has  an  almost  globular  shape, 
so  that  the  slightest  current  in  the  water  causes  it  to  roll  ofi"  the 
oral  disc  of  its  parent,  and  often  carries  it  some  distance  before  it 
sinks  to  the  bottom,  as  its  specific  gravity  is  not  much  greater  than 
that   of    sea- water.     As   soon   as   the   young  anemone   finds  the 
bottom  of  the  vessel  it  becomes  orientated  in  the  proper  direction 
and  fixed  by  the  pedal  disc,  apparently  possessing  already  that  well- 
marked  polarity  which  is  characteristic  even  of  pieces  of  adult 
anemones  which  include  a  portion  of  the  pedal  disc  (see  A.  P. 
Hazen,  Arch,f.  Enttvickelungsmechanik  d,  Org,^  Bd.  14,  1902,  pp. 
592-599,  and  Bd.  16,  1903,  pp.  365-376,  Sagartia  lucim).     We 
have  occasionally  seen  adult  specimens  of  Actinia  mesemhryan- 
themum  assume  this  globular  and  buoyant  form,  the  pedal  disc 
becoming  free  from  its  attachment,  the  basal  part  of  the  animal 
swollen  and  the  oral  disc  retracted.     Both  S,  troglodytes  and  A. 
mesembryarUhemum  are  frequently  found  in  this  condition  at  birth, 
but  adult  specimens  of  the  former  rarely  adopt  it,  though  a  case  is 
mentioned  by  Gosse  (1860,  p.  95).     S.  troglodytes  seems  to  rarely 
change  its  station  when  once  settled  in  a  cavity  which  is  to  its 
liking. 


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1903-4,]    On  Aged  Specimens  of  Sagartia  troglodytes,  etc.     299 

S,  troglodytes  is,  or  may  be,  viviparous.  As  stated  above 
(p.  298),  all  the  young  which  we  have  seen  extruded  were  already 
provided  with  six,  or  more  usually  twelve  tentacles.  Our 
experience  agrees  with  that  of  Mr  Sydney  Chaflfers,  Registrar 
of  the  Owens  College,  Manchester  (see  also  p.  301),  whose 
specimens  have  invariably  reproduced  in  a  similar  manner.  He 
informs  us  that  he  has  seen  many  batches  of  young  born,  and 
has  succeeded  in  feeding  some  of  them  within  a  few  minutes 
after  extrusion.  Neither  Mr  Chaflfers  nor  ourselves  have  seen 
any  ova  or  ciliated  larvae  issue  from  the  mouth.  Oskar  Carlgren, 
however,  states  ("  Die  Brutpflege  der  Actiniarien,"  BioL  Gentrcdhl,, 
Bd.  21,  1901,  p.  469)  that  in  S,  troglodytes,  S,  viduata,  and 
S.  undata,  fertilisation  of  the  ova  takes  place  in  the  sea- water 
outside  the  parent.  It  appears,  therefore,  that  S.  troglodytes  may 
be  either  oviparous,  as  in  Carlgren 's  specimens,  or  viviparous,  as 
in  Mr  Chaflfers'  and  ours. 

The  mode  of  reproduction  in  anemones  is  evidently  subject  to 
some  variation.  For  example,  Bunodactts  (Bunodes)  gemmaeea  is 
usually  viviparous,  "living  and  well-formed  young"  with  twelve 
tentacles  being  brought  forth  (Gosse,  1860,  p.  193,  and  Carlgren, 
Biol  Centrcdbl,  Bd.  21,  1901,  p.  469).  Mr  Chaflfers,  who  has 
also  observed  the  reproduction  of  anemones  of  this  species,  states 
that  he  has  found  them  to  be  in  all  cases  but  one  viviparous. 
He  observed  on  one  occasion  the  extrusion  of  four  or  five  ciliated 
larv®,  which  swam  vigorously  for  some  minutes. 

We  have  carefully  observed  the  old  specimens  of  Sagartia 
troglodytes  during  the  last  two  years,  with  the  view  of  noting 
any  points  of  interest  in  their  appearance  and  physiology.  It 
was  not  possible  to  obtain  one  for  dissection  or  histological 
examination.  On  comparing  these  old  ones  with  younger  specimens, 
there  is  seen  to  be  little  diflference  in  their  external  characters. 
Certain  younger  individuals,  the  progeny  of  the  old  ones,  and 
now  about  fourteen  years  old,  are  living  in  another  aquarium,  to 
which  they  were  removed  soon  after  birth.  They  have  been  under 
very  favourable  circumstances  as  regards  volume  of  water,  feeding, 
etc.,  and  are  now  larger  than  their  parents.  The  latter  are  rather 
more  variegated  in  their  coloration  than  is  the  case  with  their 
oflfspring,  but  these  differences  are  not  important.     The  coloration 


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300  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh.  [sEsfs. 

of  this  species  is,  as  Gosse  has  pointed  out  (1860,  pp.  89-92), 
extremely  variable.  Specimens  of  this  species  collected  by  one 
of  us  in  the  Faeroes  are  both  smaller  and  more  intensely  pigmented 
than  others  from  the  Scottish  coast.  Specimens  kept  in  captivity 
show  little  tendency  to  increase  in  size,  but  become  decidedly 
paler  in  colour.  These  old  captives  are  lighter  in  colour  than 
individuals  which  have  been  more  recently  taken  from  a  rock  pool. 
All  the  individuals  of  this  species  which  we  have  observed  are 
sensitive  to  changes  of  light  and  of  temperature,  becoming  and 
remaining  semi-contracted  during  cold  weather  and  at  night,  but 
expanding  to  their  fullest  hi  warm,  bright  weather.  The  old  ones 
are  much  more  strongly  affected  by  unfavourable  conditions  than 
those  which  are  more  than  thirty  years  younger,  and  also  are 
longer  in  recovering  when  conditions  become  again  favourable. 
When  the  aquaria  are  examined  in  early  morning  or  in  fine  warm 
weather  succeeding  a  period  of  cold,  it  is  found  that  the  old 
specimens  remain  contracted  for  some  time  after  their  children 
and  grandchildren  are  fully  expanded. 

The  most  notable  difference  between  the  old  (fifty  years)  and 
the  younger  (fourteen  years)  individuals  of  Sayaiiia  troglodytes  is, 
as  would  be  expected,  in  point  of  fertility.  In  1903  the  sixteen 
old  ones  did  not  produce  altogether  more  than  half  a  dozen  young ; 
indeed,  it  is  doubtful  whether  they  bred  at  all,  as  the  few  young 
found  beside  them  may  not  have  been  tlieir  progeny.  During 
the  same  period  their  children  and  grandchildren  reproduced  in 
large  numbers  (hundreds),  though,  as  mentioned  above  (p.  297), 
only  a  few  of  these  survived. 

Sagartia  troglodytes^  in  these  aquaria  at  any  rate,  ap{)arently 
takes  tliree  years  to  reach  maturity. 

In  the  early  part  of  1904  the  aquaria  were  somewhat 
neglected,  the  water  was  aerated  less  frequently  and  not  changed 
for  over  three  months,  and  the  animals  remained  unfed  for  a  longer 
period  than  usual.  Probably  as  a  result  of  these  less  favourable 
conditions  only  a  few  young,  much  fewer  than  usual,  were  produced, 
even  by  the  younger  specimens  of  Sayartia ;  these  younger  ones 
were  abnormally  thin  and  transparent,  and  were  not  extruded  until 
early  in  April.  The  sixteen  original  specimens  produced  no 
offspring  whatever  in  the  spring  of  this  year  (1904). 


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1908-4.]    On  Aged  Spedmens  of  Sagartia  troglodytes,  etc.    301 

Specimens  of  Actinia  meaemhryanthemum  living  under  identical 
conditions  and  in  the  same  aquaria  as  the  Sagartia  were  more 
fruitful,  two  in  particular  being  very  prolific,  though  their  breeding 
season  was  somewhat  retarded.  It  would  therefore  appear  that 
S,  troglodytes  is  more  sensitive  than  A,  Tnesemhryanthemum  to 
changes  in  the  environment,  and  that  these  changes  exert  a 
considerable  effect  on  the  reproduction,  though  it  is  obvious  that 
there  is  some  individual  variation  in  this  respect. 

In  August  1903  two  specimens  of  S.  troglodytes  were  brought 
from  Thorshavn  in  the  Faeroes  and  placed  in  the  aquaria.  In  the 
following  October  each  produced  several  young,  and  in  April  1904 
one  of  them  gave  birth  to  a  single  young  anemone.  All  the  other 
specimens  of  S.  troglodytes  which  were  under  the  same  conditions 
breed  only  in  the  spring,  and  it  is  improbable  that  October  is  the 
normal  breeding-time  of  specimens  under  natural  conditions  in 
the  Faeroes,  as  by  this  late  season  of  the  year  the  sea  is  already 
running  high,  and  there  would  be  a  great  risk  of  the  delicate 
young  anemones  being  unable  to  fix  themselves,  and  being  destroyed. 
It  is  probable  that  the  change  of  environment  (perhaps  temperature 
was  largely  responsible)  had  induced  these  anemones  to  breed  out 
of  their  usual  season  (see  also  p.  303). 

We  are  indebted  to  Mr  Sydney  Chaffers  for  sending  to  us 
some  particulars  regarding  anemones  which  he  has  kept  in  captivity 
for  a  number  of  years  (see  also  pp.  299,  303).  These  specimens 
have  in  most  cases  been  returned  to  the  sea.  He  lias  kept  for 
a  period  of  eight  years,  without  any  difficulty,  specimens  of 
Actinia  mesenibryanthemum,  Sagartia  troglodytett,  and  Bunodactis 
(Bunofles)  gemmacea  in  aquaria  containing  about  seven  gallons  of 
sea-water.  These  anemones  were  fed  regularly  twice  a  week  on  a 
portion  of  the  mantle  of  Mytilus,  and  the  water  was  aerated  every 
other  day  by  means  of  a  glass  syringe.  Mr  Chaffers  states  that 
during  these  eight  years  there  was  no  appreciable  alteration  in  the 
size  and  appearance  of  these  anemones.  This  supports  the  view 
that  under  favourable  conditions  they  may  live  to  a  great  age. 

Miss  Nelson  informs  us  that  Actinia  mesnnhryanthemum  is  the 
only  other  anemone  which  she  has  been  successful  in  keeping  for 
any  length  of  time,  and  that  no  specimens  of  this  species  have  lived 
in  her  collection  for  more  than  about  eight  years. 


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302  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edivhurgh.         [ 

A  specimen  of  this  species  collected  by  Sir  J.  Graham  Dalyell 
(1848,  p.  203)  at  North  Berwick  in  August  1828  reached  the  age 
of  about  sixty-six  years.  So  far  as  we  can  ascertain,  this  is  the 
only  recorded  example  of  longevity  in  anemones,  and  is  quot^  by 
Gosse  (1860,  p.  182),  M*Bain  (1878,  p.  280),  Weismann  (1891, 
pp.  6,  55),  and  others. 

Dalyell  computed,  after  comparison  of  the  size  of  this  specimen 
with  that  of  others  which  had  been  bred  in  his  aquaria,  that  it 
must  have  been  at  least  seven  years  old  at  the  time  of  its  capture. 
After  DalyelFs  death  in  1851  this  anemone  was  placed  successively 
under  the  care  of  several  naturalists,  and  died  in  August  1887, 
being  then  about  sixty-six  years  old.  Unfortunately,  nothing  is 
known  with  certainty  as  to  the  cause  of  its  death.  The  obituary 
notice  which  appeared  in  The  Scotsman  states  that  the  anemone 
"  appeared  to  be  in  excellent  health  up  to  a  few  weeks  ago,  when 
it  was  attacked  by  a  parasitic  disease,  which  finally  proved  fatal." 
Mr  R.  Lindsay,  who  had  charge  of  this  anemone  during  the  last 
five  years  of  its  life,  informs  us  that  this  report  is  unfounded,  and 
that  "the  death  of  the  anemone  was  not  due  to  any  parasitic 
disease,"  but  was  apparently  "natural."  There  is  also  a  footnote* 
to  this  effect  on  p.  55  of  Weismann's  Essays  (1891,  vol.  i.).  It 
was  kept  in  a  comparatively  small  volume  of  water  (the  vessel  in 
which  it  lived  is  described  as  a  large  tumbler),  was  fed  on  half 
a  mussel  once  a  fortnight,  and  the  sea-water  was  chemged  soon 
afterwards. 

During  the  first  twenty  years  of  its  life  it  produced  334  young 
(Dalyell,  1848,  p.  213),  and  then  remained  unproductive  for  some 
years,  but  during  the  spring  of  1857  it  gave  birth  to  230  young 
during  the  course  of  a  single  night  (M*Bain,  1878,  p.  286).  For 
the  next  fifteen  years  it  was  unproductive,  but  in  August  1872  it 
produced  a  brood  of  30,  and  in  December  of  the  same  year  one 
of  9.  It  continued  to  reproduce  each  year,  the  number  of  its 
young  being  from  5  to  20  at  a  birth.  During  the  seven 
years  beginning  August  1872,  over  150  living  young  were  bom. 
Two  of  these  were  isolated  and  regularly  fed,  and  at  the  age  of 

*  *'  It  died,  by  a  natural  death,  on  Aagust  4th,  1887,  after  having  appeared 
to  become  gradually  weaker  for  some  months  previous  to  this  date."  -Foot- 
note by  Professor  Poulton,  from  information  obtained  by  Mr  J.  S.  Haldane. 


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i9a3-4.]    On  Aged  Specimens  of  Sagartia  troglodytes,  etc,     303 

four  years  produced  over  20  young  ones,  so  that  the  offepring 
produced  by  DalyelPs  Actinia  when  it  had  reached  the  age  of  fifty 
years  were  quite  normal  and  vigorous. 

A  few  of  the  statements  regarding  the  breeding  of  these 
anemones  in  captivity  may  be  brought  together  here.  As  noted 
above  (p.  297),  Miss  Nelson's  specimens  of  Sagartia  troglodytes, 
which  are  usually  fed  once  a  month,  breed  in  the  spring.  During 
the  spring  of  this  year  (1904),  however,  when  they  were  somewhat 
neglected,  and  feeding,  aeration  and  change  of  water  occurred 
at  longer  intervals,  they  were  much  less  productive.  A  Faerish 
specimen  of  this  species  placed  in  the  same  aquarium  bred  in 
autumn  1903  and  in  the  spring  of  1904,  the  latter  being  probably 
its  normal,  and  the  former  an  unusual  breeding  season,  induced  by 
change  in  the  environment,  rise  of  temperature  being  probably  an 
important  factor  (though  better  feeding  may  have  contributed  to 
the  result).* 

Mr  ChalTers  states  that  his  specimens  of  S.  troglodytes  and 
A.  mesembryantkemumy  which  are  fed  twice  a  week,  bring  forth 
young  at  all  times  of  the  year  except  during  the  cold  weather. 

Dalyell  (p.  214)  states  that  **  feeding  certainly  promotes  fertility '' 
in  Actinia  mesembryanthemum. 

From  these  facts  it  appears  that  temperature  and  feeding 
exercise  a  very  considerable  influence  upon  the  production  of 
young  in  these  forms  of  life. 

Sagartia  troglodytes  and  Actinia  mesembryanthemum  are 
viviparous;  the  former  may  also  be  oviparous  (see  p.  299). 
Bunodactis  {Bunodes)  gemmacea  is  usually  viviparous,  but  Mr 
Chaffers  has  observed,  on  one  occasion,  the  extrusion  of  ciliated 
larvae. 

Little  is  known  concerning  the  rate  of  growth  and  the  duration 
of  life  in  Coelenterates,  but  it  may  be  useful  to  collect  here  some 
of  the  scattered  references  to  these  subjects. 

Hydrozoa. — Evidence  shows  that  Hydroids  grow  rapidly,  for,  as 
Hincks  (1868,  p.  xliii)  remarks,  "timber  immersed  in  the  sea  is 

*  This  specimen  was  taken  from  a  pool  near  high- water  mark,  where  food 
was  probably  not  abundant.  We  have  noticed,  on  the  west  coast  of  Scotland, 
that  the  largest  specimens  are  almost  invariably  found  in  the  pools  near  low- 
water  mark,  those  living  in  pools  higher  up  the  beach  being  distinctly 
smaller. 


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304  Proceedings  of  Boycd  Society  of  Edinburgh.         [i 

soon  found  to  be  covered  with  a  luxuriant  growth  of  zoophyte  .... 
a  Eudendrium  has  been  observed  to  cover  the  bottom  of  a  boat  in 
fifteen  days. 

One  of  us  has  observed  off  the  coast  of  the  Malay  Peninsula 
hydroid  colonies  {Obelia,  sp.)  several  inches  in  length  attached  to 
the  cast  skins  of  sea  snakes  {Enhydrina  valakadien  and  others). 
These  therefore  had  grown  upon  the  skins  before  the  latter  had 
had  time  to  disiptegrate,  for  such  colonies  were  not  present  on  any 
of  the  hundreds  of  living  sea  snakes  examined. 

Hincks  states  (p.  xliv)  that  some  species  of  hydroids,  especially 
such  as  grow  on  fronds  and  stems  of  seaweed,  are  annuals.  The 
larger  arborescent  masses  of  the  stouter  kinds  of  Sertidaria^ 
Helecinm,  Eudendrium^  etc.,  are,  however,  probably  the  growth  of 
several  seasons.* 

Some  of  the  Siphonophora  are  probably  annual.  A  species  of 
PorpUa  t  is  common  in  calm  warm  weather  (February  to  April)  in 
the  Indian  seas,  but  completely  disappears  in  the  stormy  season 
(about  July).  This  animal  has  no  power  of  sinking,  and  its  com- 
plete disappearance  seems  to  indicate  that  it  has  perished,  and 
those  which  appear  in  the  next  warm  season  probably  belong  to 
the  following  generation. 

*  Thero  is  a  complete  alisence  of  hydranths  in  some  forms  dnring  the  winter, 
but  the  coenosarc  persists,  and  new  polyps  develop  by  budding  in  the  following 
spring.  Weismann  {Die  EnbsUhung  der  SexuaZzellen  hei  den  BydromeduaaCf 
p.  102,  Jena,  1883)  states  that  in  Eitdendrium  racemosum  the  hydranths  are 
wanting  during  the  winter  in  those  colonies  which  are  situated  in  exposed 
stormy  places,  but  they  may  persist  in  those  which  live  in  more  protected 
situations.  The  hydranths  of  Tubularia  indivisa  (Allmaii,  Oyntnoblastie 
Hydroids,  p.  403,  Ray  Soc,  1871)  are  in  greatest  perfection  during  spring 
and  summer,  and  when  the  racemes  of  gonophores  have  attained  their  greatest 
.size  the  hydranths  are  *'  perpetually  cast  otf  and  renewed."  Towards  the  end 
of  summer  the  renewal  of  tlie  hydranths  ceases,  and  the  upper  parts  of  the 
perisarcal  tubes  are  empty,  and  probably  remain  so  duriuj;;  the  winter,  new 
hydranths  being  formed  in  the  spring.  Van  Beneden  ( "  Recherchcs  sur  la 
Fanne  Littorale  de  Belgique  (Polypes),'*  M^m.  VAcad,  Boy,  de  Belgiqwt^ 
t.  36,  1867,  p.  101)  records  specimens  of  Tubularia  and  Campanularia  which 
have  lived  in  his  aquaria  for  several  years  without  any  diminution  of  their 
powers  of  growth. 

t  It  may  be  of  interest  to  refer  here  to  what  we  believe  is  the  first  reference 
in  English  to  Porpita,  It  occurs  in  a  letter  written  from  6oa  by  Thomas 
Steevens  in  1579.  In  describing  his  voyage  to  India  he  says — '*The  first 
sign  of  laud  was  certain  fowls  which  they  know  to  be  of  India.  The  second 
was  boughs  of  palms  and  sedges.     The  third,  snakes  swimming  on  the  water, 


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1903-4.]    On  Aged  Specimens  of  Sagartia  troglodytes,  etc.    305 

Antliozoa, 

(1)  Actiniaria, — The  instances  given  earlier  in  this  paper  show 
that  the  age  at  which  an  anemone  hecomes  mature  varies  with  the 
species  and  conditions.  For  example,  Dalyell  (p.  2 1 7)  records  a 
specimen  of  Actinia  niesembryanfhemum,  one  of  the  progeny  of  his 
famous  specimen,  which  was  mature  fifteen  months  after  its  birth ; 
while  M*Bain  (p.  287)  states  that  another  of  the  progeny  of  this 
same  parent,  although  carefully  tended  and  fed  at  least  once  a  week, 
was  four  years  in  reaching  maturity.  Sagartia  troglodytes  seems 
to  be  at  least  three  years  in  reaching  maturity,  at  any  rate  in 
captivity.  These  anemones  may  continue  productive,  either 
regularly  or  at  intervals  (this  being  apparently  largely  determined 
by  the  external  conditions  and  regularity  of  feeding),  for  over 
fifty  years.  The  only  information  available  respecting  the  actual 
duration  of  life  in  anemones  is  that  derived  from  the  statement 
that  DalyelPs  Actinia  apparently  died  *'a  natural  death  "  at  the 
age  of  sixty-six  (see  p.  302).  Miss  Nelson's  specimens  of  Sagartia, 
which  are  now  about  fifty  years  old,  show  little  sign  of  loss  of 
vegetative  vigour,  but,  as  noted  above  (p.  300),  breed  either 
sparingly  or  not  at  all. 

(2)  Madreporaiia. — The  only  reference  known  to  us  upon  the 
duration  of  life  in  corals  is  contained  in  a  paper  by  Mr  Stanley 
Gardiner  (1902).  He  describes  (pp.  465-468)  the  life  history  of 
Flabellum  rubrum,  and  states  that  by  the  time  the  corallum 
measures  15-17  mm.  along  the  long  axis  of  its  calicle,  the 
mesenteries  bear  testes,  and  spermatozoa  are  being  discharged 
from  those  on  the  larger  mesenteries.  Coralla  of  this  size  bear 
"five  lines  of  growth,  which  correspond  probably  to  annual 
periods."  Later,  the  male  organs  gradually  disappear  and  ova 
are  found  on  the  mesenteries.  In  specimens  in  which  the  axis 
of  the  corallum  is  over  25  mm.  in  length,  ripe  ova  are  present. 
As  the  two  or  three  large  ova  on  each  mesentery  are  extruded, 
a   similar   number   of  smaller   ones  take   their  place,   and   this 

and  a  substance  which  they  call  by  th^  name  of  a  coin  of  inoney  as  broad  and  as 
round  as  a  groat^  vxmderfully  printed  and  stamped  of  nature  like  unto  some 
coin.*^ — Voyages  and  Travels^  mainly  during  the  Sixteenth  and  Seventeenth 
Centuriss,  C.  R.  Beazley,  1908,  p.  168. 

PROC.  BOY.  SOC.  EDIN. — VOL.  XXV.  20 


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306         Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh,  [j 

process  is  continued  for  a  considerable  time,  there  being  no  dearth 
or  vacuity  in  the  ovary.  Mr  Grardiner  finds,  however,  that  in 
a  specimen  40  mm.  long  some  of  the  mesenteries  bear  no  ova, 
but  on  most  of  them  isolated  ova  are  present.  On  none  of  the 
mesenteries  are  there  any  small  ova  to  take  the  place  of  those 
which  had  escaped  or  were  about  to  escape.  **  It  seemed  obvious 
that  a  critical  period  had  been  reached,  after  which  ova  ceased 
to  develop.  .  .  .  There  is  no  direct  proof — indeed  it  is  only  a 
presumption — that  the  polyp  now  dies."  This  seems,  however, 
very  probable,  for  the  largest  specimen  among  over  600 
from  the  Gape  of  Good  Hope  measured  42  mm.  in  length,  and 
Mr  Gardiner  dredged  eight  dead  ones  in  the  Maldives  which 
average  about  38  mm.  His  largest  living  specimen,  the  one 
described  above,  measured  40  mm. 

Mr  Gardiner  has  been  good  enough  to  re-examine  his  material, 
and  to  give  us  some  valuable  information  respecting  the  number 
of  growth-lines  on  these  old  specimens.  These  growth-lines  are 
difficult  to  count  in  specimens  in  which  the  calicle  is  longer  than 
20  mm.  He  found  that  the  maximum  number  of  lines,  allowing 
for  the  cut-oflf  base,  is  about  24  in  the  largest  specimens.  We 
may  assume,  therefore,  that  these  specimens  of  Fldbellum^ 
which  were  obviously  nearing  the  end  of  their  reproductive 
powers,  and  probably  also  near  the  end  of  life,  were  about 
twenty-four  years  old. 

Mr  Gardiner  states  (1902,  p.  469)  that  he  examined,  on  the 
reefs  of  Rotuma,  a  large  area  covered  by  Madrepora  ptdcra,  Brook, 
var.  cUaeolata,  Brook,  and  found  that  most  of  the  polyps  were  dead. 
The  living  polyps  were  all  female,  and  the  reproductive  organs 
were  in  the  condition  described  above  for  the  40  mm.  Flabellum, 
that  is,  the  ova  were  either  few  and  isolated,  or  had  been 
already  discharged.  In  this  and  in  other  similar  cases  mentioned 
there  were  no  external  conditions,  such  as  silting  up,  which  might 
account  for  death.     Each  colony  has  presumably  originated  from 

single  ovum,  and  the  limitations  in  the  size  of  the  colonies  point 
to  some  reason  innate  in  the  organisms  themselves.  '*  There  can 
be  no  rejuvenescence,  and  the  operative  cause  is  probably  the 
same  as  that  which  ultimately  produces  the  death  of  our  forest 
trees,"  but  Mr  Gardiner  does  not  consider  that  he  is  able  to  offer  an 


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1903-4.]    On  Aged  Specimens  of  Sagartia  troglodytes,  etc,     307 

explanation  whioh  is  complete  or  quite  satbfactory  (but  see  his 
paper,  1902,  pp.  470,  471). 

We  are  grateful  to  Mr  Gardiner  for  permission  to  bring  forward 
here  some  of  his  observations,  not  yet  published,  on  the  probable 
age  of  certain  large  colonies  of  Maldivan  corals  *  which  seemed  to 
be  dying.  His  method  of  estimating  the  age  of  these  colonies  is 
as  follows : — The  number  of  polyps  on  colonies,  the  age  of  which 
is  approximately  known,  t  is  first  determined.  Each  of  these 
colonies  presumably  originated  from  a  single  primary  polyp,  and 
the  numerous  polyps  have  been  produced  by  successive  budding. 
The  number  of  polyps  so  produced  would  increase  in  approximately 
geometrical  progression.  Knowing  the  period  required  for  the 
production  of  the  known  number  of  polyps  on  the  colony  of  known 
age,  it  is  possible  to  make  an  estimate  of  the  age  of  the  old  colonies 
of  the  same  species  from  the  number  of  polyps  of  which  they  are 
composed.  Mr  Gardiner  finds  that  the  results  of  his  examination 
of  several  colonies  are  strikingly  uniform,  giving  a  maximum  age 
of  twenty-two  to  twenty-eight  years. 

It  is  therefore  probable  that  the  duration  of  life  in  solitary 
corals  like  Flabellum  is  about  twenty-four  years,  and  in  colonial 
corals  such  as  Goniaairasa,  Pnonastrasa,  OrbiceUa,  and  PociUoporOj 
from  twenty-two  to  twenty-eight  years. 

LITERATUKE. 

1848.  Daltbll,  Sir  John  Graham,  Rare  and  Remarkable 
Animals  of  Scotland^  vol.  ii.  ch.  10,  London,  1848. 

1860.  GoasB,  P.  H.,  A  History  of  the  British  Sea  Anemones  and 
Corals,  London,  1860. 

1868.  HiNCKS,  T.,  A  History  of  the  British  Hydroid  Zoophytes, 
vol.  i.,  London,  1868. 

*  CfonioMtrwa  reti/ormis,  Prionastroea  fuseoviridis,  Orbieella  laxct,  and 
yarioiis  species  or  fades  of  PocUlop(yfa. 

t  These  colonies  must  have  grown  up  (from  ova)  within  a  period  **  certainly 
less  than  three  years,  and  probably  not  more  than  two  years  and  ten  months." 
They  were  obtained  from  a  canal  cut  through  the  reef  of  Hulule,  which  is 
regularly  cleaned  out  once  every  three  years.  See  J.  S.  Gardiner,  The 
Fauna  and  Geography  of  the  Maldive  and  Laecadive  Archipelagoeif  voL  L 
pp.  329,  330,  Cambridge,  1908. 


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308  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edivhurgh,  [sbw. 

1878.  M*Bain,  J.,  **  Notes  on  Actinia  mesembryanthemumy' 
Proc,  Roy,  Phys.  Soc.  Edin,,  vol.  iv.,  pp.  280-88,  Edinburgh,  1878. 

1891.  Weismann,  a.,  Essay 8  upon  Hereflity  and  Kindred 
Biological  Problems^  edited  by  E.  B.  Poulton,  S.  Schonland,  and 
A.  E.  Shipley,  vol.  i.,— Essay  on  "The  Duration  of  Life,"  Oxford, 
1891. 

1902.  Gardiner,  J.  S.,  "Some  Notes  on  Variation  and 
Protandry  in  Flabellum  rtibrum,  and  Senescence  in  the  same  and 
other  Corab,"  Proc.  Camb.  Phil,  Soc,  vol.  xi.,  pp.  463-471, 
Cambridge,  1902. 


{Issued  separately  July  21,  1904.) 


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1903-4.]  On  the  Molecular  Condition  of  Demcigiietised  Nickel.  309 


Note  on  the  Moleciilar  Oondition  of  Nickel  (and  Iron) 
demagnetised  by  decreasing  Reversals.  By  James 
Bussell 

(Read  July  18,  1904.) 

In  a  former  communication*  it  has  heen  shown  that  iron 
demagnetised  hy  decreasing  reversals  of  a  directional  force  ab, 
develops  an  induction  component  at  right  angles  to  the  sub- 
sequent magnetising  force  H,  when  the  angle  $  between  these  two 
forces  is  other  than  0^  and  90^.  This  component  after  reaching  a 
maximum  tends  to  disappear  as  saturation  values  are  reached. 

It  has  now  been  found  that  these  transverse  induction  effects 
also  exist  in  nickel. 

The  curves  for  nickel  resemble  those  for  iron  in  the  following 
respects: — 

(First)  They  change  sign  either  if  the  direction  of  H  be  re- 
versed, or  if  a6  be  rotated  through  an  angle  of  90' ; 

{Second)  Their  maxima  are  sharpest  when  d  =  45' ;  and 

(TJiird)  They  vanish  in  the  horizontal  axis  when  tf  =  0'  and  90*. 

The  curves  for  nickel  differ  from  those  for  iron  in  the  following 
respects : — 

(First)  The  smallness  of  the  transverse  induction  is  extreme. 
When  ^  =  45',  the  nickel  curves  reach  a  maximum  of  about 
13  C.G.S.  units  only.  In  iron,  under  the  same  conditions,  the 
maximum  attained  is  equal  to  fully  230  C.G.S.  units.  In  order 
therefore  to  compare  by  superposition  the  curves  obtained  for 
nickel  and  iron,  the  nickel  ordinates  require  to  be  increased 
eighteen  times. 

(Second)  If  o^  be  rotated  so  that  d  is  gradually  reduced  from 
45'  to  0',  and  the  values  of  H  be  not  too  small,  the  curves  are 
relatively  increased  in  value  to  an  extent  greater  than  the  corre- 
sponding curves  for  iron.  Further,  if  ^  be  not  too  small,  the  45' 
maximum  is  even  exceeded. 

*  ''The  Molecular  Condition  of  Iron  demagnetised  by  variouB  Methods," 
Proceedings  Roy,  Soc  Edin. ,  vol.  xxiv.  p.  544. 


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310  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh,  [sess. 

The  above  results  may  be  equally  well  illustrated  if  transverse 
induction  be  plotted  not  against  H  for  various  values  of  ^,  but 
against  d  increasing  from  0'  to  90'  for  various  values  of  H.  If  the 
values  of  H  be  low,  the  curves  for  both  metals  appear  to  reach 
their  maxima  when  $  is  approximately  equal  to  45'.  If,  however, 
H  be  taken  higher,  maximum  values  are  rapidly  displaced  to  the 
left,  the  curves  rising  very  abruptly  between  0'  and  15'.  In  iron, 
on  the  other  hand,  this  displacement  occurs  slowly,  and  is  (within 
present  experimental  limits)  much  less  in  amount. 

The  above  experiments  were  made  with  hollow  cylinders,  so 
constructed  that  the  shell  of  each  cylinder  was  itself  hollow.  Or, 
they  may  be  described  as  hollow  anchor  rings  flattened  so  that  the 
difference  between  the  internal  and  external  radii  was  less  than  1 
in  10.  The  width  of  each  hollow  ring  was  made  nearly  equal  to 
IT  times  its  average  radius.  The  smallness  of  the  transverse  effect 
in  nickel  necessitated  the  elimination  of  the  demagnetising  effect 
of  the  ends  of  the  hollow  cylinders  previously  used. 

I  take  this  opportunity  of  acknowledging  my  indebtedness  to 
the  Royal  Society  of  London  for  placing  at  my  disposal  a  Govern- 
ment grant  for  the  purposes  of  this  research. 


{Issued  separately  August  22,  1904.) 


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1903-4.]     Lord  Kelviu  on  a  Free  Procession  of  Waves.  311 


On  the  Front  and  Bear  of  a  Free  Procession  of  Waves 
in  Deep  Water.  {Continued  from  Proc.  R.S.E.,  Feb.  Ist, 
1904.)    By  Lord  Kelvin. 

(Read  June  20,  1904.) 

§  11.  The  present  communication  is  substituted  for  another 
bearing  the  same  title,  which  was  read  before  the  Royal  Society 
of  Edinburgh  on  Januarj'  7th,  1887,  because  the  result  of  that 
paper  was  rendered  imperfect  and  unsatisfactory  by  omission  of 
the  exponential  factor  referred  to  in  §  10  of  my  paper  of  February 
1st,  1904.  I  shall  refer  henceforth  to  the  last-mentioned  paper  as 
§§  1  .  .  .  .   10  above. 

§  12.  I  begin  by  considering  processions  produced  by  super- 
position of  static  initiating  disturbances,  of  the  type  expressed  in 
(12)  of  §  4  above;  graphically  represented  by  fig.  1 ;  and  leading 
to  motion  investigated  in  §§  1-3,  5-10.  The  particular  type  of 
that  solution  which  I  now  choose,  is  that  chosen  at  the  end  of  §  4, 
which  we,  with  a  slight  but  useful  modification,*  may  now  write 
as  follows : — 

where  p=  v/(22  +  x2),  and  X=tan-i(a;/2) 

Here  -  f  denotes  the  upward  vertical  component  of  the  displace- 
ment of  the  fluid  at  time  t  from  its  undisturbed  position  at  point 
(x,  z),  which  may  be  either  in  the  free  surface  or  anywhere  below 
it.  Taking  ^  =  0  in  (17),  we  have,  for  the  initial  height  of  the 
free  surface  above  the  undisturbed  level, 

§  13.  We  shall  first  take,  as  initiating  disturbance,  a  row 
extending  from  -  oo  to  -|-  oo  of  superpositions  of  (18);  alternately 

*  The  substitution  of  JX,  for  ^w- tan" *^/? — ^- ,  saves  considerable  labour 

V  p-z 

and  use  of  logarithms  ;  especially  when,  as  in  our  calculations,  2=1. 


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312  Proceedings  of  IU>y<d  Soddy  of  Edinburgh,  [ 


SI8S. 


positive  and  negative  ;  and  placed  at  equal  successive  distances  \\ : 
so  that  we  now  have 

-i,  =  P(j;,0)=  2"(-l)'«^(^+»'-^.o).     .     .   (19). 

or,  as  we  may  write  it, 

where 

D(^,0)  =  <^(;.,0)-<^(x+^,0) (20). 

In  (19),  P  denotes  a  space-periodic  function,  with  X  for  its  period 
This  formula,  with  t  substituted  for  0,  represents  -  {„  being  the 
elevation  of  the  surface  above  undisturbed  level  at  time  t,  in 
virtue  of  initial  disturbance  represented  by  (19). 

§  14.  Remark  now  that  whatever  function  be  represented  by  ^, 
the  formula  for  P  in  (19)  implies  that 

P(.r  +  \,0)  =  P(a-,0) (21), 

which  means  that  P  is  a  space-periodic  function  with  X  for  period. 
And  ( 1 9)  also  implies  that 

P(x-hiX,0)=-P(^,0) (22); 

which  includes  (21).  And  with  the  actual  function,  (18),  which 
we  have  chosen  for  <^(a;,  0),  the  fact  that  4>(x^  0)  =  ^(  -  a;,  0)  makes 

P(.c,0)  =  P(-x,0) (23). 

Thus  (19)  has  a  graph  of  the  character  fig.  5,  symmetrical  on  each 

yW 

Fig.  5. 

side  of  each  maximum  and  minimum  ordinate.  The  Fourier 
harmonic  analysis  of  P(jr,  0),  when  subject  to  (22)  and  (23),  gives 

P(ar,  0)  =  A,  co8--^  +  A3  cos  3?^  +  A^  cos  5?^  +  •  •  •    (24). 

AAA 

§  15.  Digression  on  periodic  functions  generated  by  addition  of 


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1908-4.]     Lord  Kelvin  an  a  Free  Procession  of  Waves.  31 3 

values  of  any  function  for  equidifferent  arguments.      Let  f{x)  \ye 
any  function  whatever,  periodic  or  non-periodic ;  and  let 

P('')=^/(x  +  i\) (25); 

which  makes 

P(a!)  =  P(a:  +  X) (26). 

Let   the    Fourier   harmonic   expansion  of  ¥{x)  be   expressed   as 
follows : — 

P(x)  =  Aq  + Ai  C08a  +  A2C0s2a  + A3C083a+  .  •  •  •  i  2w« 

-I-Bi8ina  +  B28in2a  +  B38in3a+  •  •  •  •   /  A. 

.     .     .    (27). 
Denoting  hyj  any  integer,  we  have  by  Fourier's  analysis 


iX^;  =  />P(.)-y?^ (28); 


which  gives 


2irx 


JXA^^T    rdxf (x  +  i\) COB j^^=r''dxf{x)coaj 

JXB,  =  y"  rdxf(x  +  ik)  sin/""'  =  l^dx/(x)  Binj-"^ 
iT:.,J  0  A       J  -»  A  ^ 

§  16.  Take  now  in  (29),  as  by  (19'),  (20), 


.    .  (29). 


/(a!)  =  <^(a-,0)-<^(a:  +  ^,0) 


(30). 


This  reduces  all  the  B's  to  zero ;  reduces  the  A's  to  zero  for  even 
values  otj ;  and  for  odd  values  of^  gives,  in  virtue  of  (22), 

^.27ra; 


/+•  2 

dxfl>{x,  0)  cos^* 


....  (31). 


Go  back  now  to  §§  3,  4,  (6),  (12),  above ;  and,  according  to  the 
last  lines  of  §  4,  take 


^(a.,0)=fRsi-/2-,  =  ^^i^±^)     .     .     .  (32). 
Hence,  for  the  harmonic  expansion  (24)  of  P^a;,  0),  we  have 


2Trsr 
T 

.     .     .   (33). 
The  imi^inary  form  of  the  last  member  of  this  equation  facilitates 

:the  evaluation  of  the  integral      Instead  of  cos^         in  the  last 

A 


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314  Proceedings  of  Royai  Society  of  Edinburgh.  \\ 

factor,  substitute 

cos^  — - +tsm -  — ,       or  fvx (34). 

A  A 


The   alternative   makes  no  diflTerence  in  the  summation 


ion  I     rfr. 


because  the  sine   term  disappears  for  the  same  reason  that  the 
sine  terms  in  (29)  disappear  because  of  (30).     Thus  (33)  becomes 

put  now  J{z  +  ur)  =  or ;  whence =  2^<r,  and  iaj=  - <t* - 2. 

V(2  +  ur) 

.     .     .   (36). 

Using  these  in  (35)  we  may  omit  the  instruction  {RS}  because 

nothing  imaginary  remains  in  the  formula :  thus  we  find 

A,^^^\'j<r.--y.  .-^=C-¥.  ?f2  •  J^  ■  ^/.  .  (37). 

Swtr      8 
=  c--r.-=       (38). 

The  transition  in  (37)  is  made  in  virtue  of  Laplace's  celebrated 


discovery  /      dae'^^^s/- 


§  1 7.  Equation  (38)  allows  us  readily  to  see  how  near  to  a  curve 
of  sines  is  the  graph  of  P(a:,  0),  for  any  particular  value  of  k/z . 
It  shows  that 

d         2wZ  4wt  4ir2 

A,=  46-r;  A^'A,=  ^^c--;  A^A,=  Vf.€-T;     .  (38). 

Suppose  for  example  X  =  42 ;  we  have 

c-X  =  €-'=  043214;  Ag/A^  =  02495  ;  A5/A8=  "03347  .  (39). 

Thus  we  see  that  A3  is  about  1/40  of  A^ ;  and  A5 ,  about  ^j^  of  A^  . 
This  is  a  fair  approach  to  sinusoidality ;  hut  not  quite  near  enough 
for  our  present  purpose.     Try  next  X=  2*  ;  we  have 

Ai  =  —  . -043214;  €-«'= -001867  ;  Aj/A^  = '001078  .  .  (40). 
vX 
Thus  Ag  is  about  a  thousandth  of  A^ ;  and  A5  about  1 J  x  10"*  of 
A  J .  This  is  a  quite  good  enough  approximation  for  our  present 
purpose :  Ag  is  imperceptible  in  any  of  our  calculations :  Aj  is 
negligible,  though  perceptible  if  included  in  our  calculations  (which 


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1908-4.]     Lord  Kelvin  on  a  Free  Procession  of  Waves,  315 

are  carried  out  to  four  significant  figures) :  but  it  would  be  utterly 
imperceptible  in  our  diagrams.  Henceforth  we  shall  occupy  our- 
selves chiefly  with  the  free  surface,  and  take  z  =  h^  the  height  of  0, 
the  origin  of  coordinates  above  the  undisturbed  level  of  the  water. 
§  18.  To  find  the  water-surface  at  any  time  t  after  being  left  free 
and  at  rest,  displaced  according  to  any  periodic  function  P(a;) 
expressed  Fourier- wise  as  in  (27) ;  take  first,  for  the  initial 
motionless  surface  displacement,  a  simple  sinusoidal  form, 

-  Jq  =  A  cos(77ia;  -  c) (41). 

Going  back  to  (2),  (3),  and  (4)  above,  let  w  {z^Xyt)  be  the  down- 
wards vertical  component  of  displacement.  We  thus  have,  as  the 
differential  equations  of  the  motion, 

dw     d^w  .^ 

d^o     dhjo     ^  ,.«v 

^-^  +  5?=-° (*')• 

These  are  satisfied  by 

w  =  C€"""  cos(ma;  -  c)  cos  ^\/(7m      .     .     .     .  (44), 

which  expresses  the  well-known  law  of  two-dimen«ional  periodic 
waves  in  infinitely  deep  water.  And  formula  (44)  with  Cc""'*  =  A 
and  ^  =  0,  agrees  with  (41).  Hence  the  addition  of  solutions  (44), 
with  jm  for  m ;  with  A  successively  put  equal  to  A^ ,  Ag  .  .  . , 
Bj ,  Bg  .  .  . ;  and,  with  c  =  0  for  the  A's,  and  =  ^w  for  the  B's,  gives  us, 
for  time  ty  the  vertical  component-displacement  at  depth  z-li  below 
the  surface,  if  at  time  ^  =  0  the  water  was  at  rest  with  its  surface  dis- 
placed according  to  (27).  Thus,  with  (38),  and  (24),  we  have  P(a;,  t), 
§  19.  Looking  to  (44)  and  (27),  and  putting  m  =  27r/\y  we  see 
that  the  component  motion  due  to  any  one  of  the  A's  or  B's  in  the 
initial  displacement  is  an  en«lless  infinite  row  of  standing  waves, 
having  wave-lengths  equal  to  \/J  and  time-periods  expressed  by 

Jim  ^  jg 
The  whole  motion  is  not  periodic  because  the  periods  of  the 
constituent  motions,  being  inversely  as  Jj,  are  not  commensurable. 
But  by  taking  X  =  2^  as  proposed  in  §  17,  which,  according  to  (40), 
makes  A3,  for  the  free  surface,  only  a  little  more  than  1/1000  of 
A  I,  we  have  so  near  an  approach  to  sinusoidality  that  in  our  illus- 


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316  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh,  [ssah. 

trations  we  may  regard  the  motion  as  being  periodic,  with  period 
( 45)  f or  y  =  1 .  This  makes  t  =  ^tr  when,  as  in  §  5,  we,  without  loes 
of  generality  (§  10),  simplify  our  numerical  statements  by  taking 
.7  =  4;  and  A  =  1,  which  makes  the  wave-length  =  2. 

§  20.  Toward  our  problem  of  "  front  and  rear,'*  remark  now 
that  the  infinite  number  of  parallel  straight  standing  sinusoidal 
waves  which  we  have  started  everywhere  over  an  infinite  plane  of 
originally  undisturbed  water,  may  be  ideally  resolved  into  two 
processions  of  sinusoidal  waves  of  half  their  height  travelling  in 
contrary  directions  with  equal  velocities  2/Vir. 

Instead  now  of  covering  the  whole  water  with  standing  waves, 
cover  it  only  on  the  negative  side  of  the  line  (not  shown  in 
our  diagrams)  YOY',  that  is  the  left  side  of  0  the  origin  of 
coordinates ;  and  leave  the  water  plane  and  motionless  on  the  right 
side  to  begin.  At  all  great  distances  on  the  left  side  of  0,  there 
will  be  in  the  beginning,  standing  waves  equivalent  to  two  trains 
of  progressive  waves,  of  wave-length  2,  travelling  rightwards  and 
leftwards  with  velocity  llJir,  The  smooth  water  on  the  right 
of  O  is  obviously  invaded  by  the  rightward  procession. 

§  21.  Our  investigation  proves  that  the  extreme  perceptible  rear 
of  the  leftward  procession  (marked  R  in  fig.  10  below)  does  not, 
through  the  space  0  R  on  the  left  side  of  0,  broadening  with  time, 
nor  anywhere  on  the  right  of  0,  perceptibly  disturb  the  rightward 
procession. 

§  22.  Our  investigation  also  proves  that  the  surface  at  O  has 
simple  harmonic  motion  through  all  time.  It  farther  shows  that 
the  rightward  procession  is  very  approximately  sinusoidal,  with 
simple  harmonic  motion,  through  a  space  O  F  (fig.  9)  to  the  right 
of  0,  broadening  with  time ;  and  that,  at  any  particular  distance 
rightwards  from  0,  this  approximation  becomes  more  and  more 
nearly  perfect  as  time  advances.  What  I  call  the  front  of  the 
rightward  procession,  is  the  wave  disturbance  beyond  the  point  F, 
at  a  not  strictly  defined  distance  rightwards  from  0,  where  the 
approximation*  to  sinusoidality  of  shape,  and  simple  harmonic 
quality  of  motion,  is  only  just  perceptibly  at  fault.  We  shall  find 
that  beyond  F  the  waves  are,  as  shown  in  fig.  9,  less  and  less  high, 
and  longer  and  longer,  at  greater  and  greater  distances  from  O, 
at  one  and  the  same  time;  but  that  the  wave-height  does  not  at 


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1908-4.]     Lord  Kelvin  on  a  Free  Procession  of  Waves.  31 7 

any  time  or  place  come  abruptly  to  nothing.  The  propagational 
velocity  of  the  beginning  of  the  disturbance  is  in  reality  infinite, 
because  we  regard  the  water  as  infinitely  incompressible. 

§  23.  Thus  we  see  that  the  front  of  the  rightward  procession, 
%vith  sinusoidal  waves  following  it  from  0,  is  simply  given  by  the 
calculation,  for  positive  values  of  x,  of  the  motion  due  to  an  initial 
motionless  configuration  of  sinusoidal  furrows  and  ridges  on  the 
left  side  of  0.  Fig.  8  represents  a  static  initial  configuration, 
which  we  denote  by  Q  {x,  0),  approximately  realising  the  con- 
dition stated  in  §  20.  Fig.  9  represents  on  the  same  scale  of 
ordinates  the  surface  disphcement  at  the  time  25r  in  the  sub- 
sequent motion  due  to  that  initial  configuration ;  which,  for  any 
time  tj  we  denote  by  Q  (ar,  t)  defined  as  follows  : — 

Q(^,  0  =  i*(«»  t)-<l>{x  +  l,t)'^tt>(x  +  2,t)-  ...  ad.  inf,      (46), 

where  tf>  is  the  function  defined  by  (17),  with  z=l  and  g  =  i. 

§  24.  The  wave-height,  at  all  distances  so  far  leftward  from  O 
that  the  influence  of  the  rear  of  the  leftward  procession  has  not 
yet  reached  them  at  any  particular  time,  t,  after  the  beginning,  is 
simply  the  'P{x,t)  of  §  13  calculated  according  to  §§  18,  17; 
and  the  motion  there  is  still  merely  standing  waves,  ideally 
resolvable  into  rightward  and  leftward  processions.  Let  I, 
beyond  the  leftward  range  of  fig.  10,  be  the  point  of  the  ideally 
extended  diagram,  not  precisely  defined,  where  the  leftward 
procession  at  any  particular  time,  f,  becomes  sensibly  in- 
fluenced by  its  own  rear.  Between  I  and  K  the  whole  motion  is 
transitional  in  character,  from  the  regular  sinusoidal  motion  P(a:,  t) 
of  the  water  on  the  left  side  of  I,  to  regular  sinusoidal  motion  of 
half  wave-height  iP(a;,  <),  from  R  to  0  ;  and  on  to  F  of  fig.  9,  the 
b^inning  of  the  front  of  the  disturbance  in  the  rightward  proces- 
sion. Hence  to  separate  ideally  the  leftward  procession  from  the 
whole  disturbance  due  to  the  initial  configuration,  we  have  only 
to  subtract  ^F(x,  t)  from  Q(a;,  t)  calculated  for  negative  values 
of  X.  Thus  the  expression  for  the  whole  of  the  leftward  pro- 
cession is 

Q'a;,  t)  -  iP(.J^,  t)  for  negative  values  of  a;  .     .     .   (47). 

Fig.  10  represents  the  free  surface  thus  found  for  the  leftward 
procession  alone  at  time  t  =  25t. 


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318  Proceedings  of  Jioyal  Society  of  Edirtinirgh.  [i 

%  25.  The  function  D(a:,  t\  which  appears  in  §  13  as  an  item  in 
one  of  the  modes  of  summing  shown  for  P(a;,  0)  in  (19'),  and 
indicated  for  P(a;,  t)  at  the  end  of  §  13,  and  which  has  been  used 
in  some  of  our  summations  for  Q(a:,  t) ;  is  represented  in  figs.  6  and 
7,  for  t «  0,  and  t  =  25t  respectively. 

§  26.  Except  for  a  few  of  the  points  of  fig.  6,  representing 
D(a:,  0),  the  calculation  has  been  performed  solely  for  integral 
values  of  ar.  It  seemed  at  first  scarcely  to  be  expected  that  a  fair 
graphic  representation  could  be  drawn  from  so  few  calculated  points; 
but  the  curves  have  actually  been  drawn  by  Mr  Witherington  with 
no  other  knowledge  than  these  points,  except  information  as  to  all 
zeros  (curve  cutting  the  luie  of  abscissas),  through  the  whole 
range  of  each  curve.  The  calculated  points  are  marked  on  each 
curve  :  and  it  seems  certain  that,  with  the  knowledge  of  the  zeros, 
the  true  curve  must  lie  very  close  in  each  case  to  that  drawn  by 
Mr  Witherington. 

§  27.  The  calculation  of  Q(j:,  t),  for  positive  integral  values  of  Xy 
is  greatly  eased  by  the  following  arrangements  for  avoiding  the 
necessity  for  direct  summation  of  a  sluggishly  convergent  infinite 
series  shown  in  (46),  by  use  of  our  knowledge  of  P(fl^  t).  We 
have,  by  (46)  and  (19), 

Q(0,  t)  =  i</>(0,  t)  -  <^(1,  t)  + 1^(2,  0  - ad,  inf.       (48), 

P(0,0=  2"(-l)W,0    ....   (49). 
<— » 

Hence,  in  virtue  of  4>{  - 1,  t)  =  <^(i,  t)^ 

P(0,0  =  2Q(0,0 (50). 

Again  going  back  to  (46),  we  have 

Q(«,0  =  i<^(^>0-<^(^+i,0  +  *(^  +  2,o-«(«  +  3,0+ 

Q(x+1,0=  i<^(j^+l,0-<^(a;4-2,0  +  <^(»  +  3,0- 

By  adding  these  we  find 

Q(a;  +  1 ,  0  +  Q(.^,  t)  =  ^[4>{x,  t^<l>(x+ 1,  t)]  =  ^I){x,  t)  (51 ). 

By  successive  applications  of  this  equation,  we  find 

2Q(x  +  t,0  =  (  -  l)'2Q(uj.0-(- iyD(^,0±  • . +I>(^-  +  *'- l»0(-'i2). 

Hence  by  putting  a;=0.  and  using  (50),  we  find  finally 

2Q(t,  0  =  (  -  1)'P(0. 0  -  (  -  1)'D(0,  0  ±  .  .  +  D(*  -  1, 0  (53). 

This  is  thoroughly  convenient  to  calculate  Q(l,  t\  Q(2,  t)  ,  ,  .  . 
successively ;  for  plotting  the  points  shown  in  fig.  9. 


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1903-4.]     Lord  Kelvin  07i  a  Free  Procession  of  Waves,  319 


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320 


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1903-4.]     Lord  Kelvin  on  a  Free  Procession  of  Waves.         321 


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FROC.  HOY.  SOC.  KDIN. — VOL.    XXV. 


21 


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322  Proceedings  of  Roycd  Society  of  Edinfmrgh,  [sess. 


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[(54). 


324  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh.  [s»m. 

§  28.  For  fig.  10,  instead  of  assuming  as  in  (47)  the  calculation 
of  Q{x,  t)  for  negative  values  of  a*,  a  very  troublesome  affair,  we 
may  now  evaluate  it  thus.     We  have  by  (46) 

Q(^xJ)^i<f>{-x,t)-<f>{-x+ht)  +  <f>(-x+'I,t)- 

Hence 

-<^(-r+l,0  +  <^(-a:  +  2,0-  . 
Now  by  the  property  of  4>,  used  in  the  first  term  of  (54),  that  its 
value  is  the  same  for  positive  and  negative  values  of  x,  we  have 
<^(  -  jj  + 1,  i)  =  <t>(x  -  i,  t).     Hence  (54)  may  be  written 

Q(^,  0  +  Q(  -  ',  0  =  'x  ( - 1  )'*(^  +  »'')= Pe^. «)  •  (-"^s)- 

Hence  Q(  -  ^S /)  =  H(^,  <)  "  Q(-»^. ') (56). 

Using  this  in  (47)  we  find 

iV(jr,t)-qix,t) (57), 

for  the  elevation  of  the  water  due  to  the  leftward  procession 
alone  at  any  point  at  distance  x  from  0  on  tlie  left  side,  x 
being  any  positive  number,  integral  or  fractional.  Having  pre- 
viously calculated  Q(x,t)  for  positive  integral  values  of  x,  we 
have  found  by  (57)  the  calculated  points  of  ^^.  10  for  the  leftwanl 
procession. 

§  29.  The  principles  and  working  i>laus  described  in  §§  1 1  -  28 
above,  affortl  a  ready  means  for  understanding  and  working  out  in 
detail  the  motion,  from  ^  =  0  to<  =  oo,  of  a  given  finite  i)rocession 
of  waves,  started  with  such  displacement  of  the  surface,  and  such 
motion  of  the  water  below  the  surface,  as  to  produce,  at  f  =  0,  a 
procession  of  a  thousand  or  more  waves  advancing  into  still  water 
in  front,  and  leaving  still  water  in  the  rear.  To  show  the  desired 
result  graphically,  extend  fig.  10  leftwards  to  as  many  wave-lengths 
as  you  please  beyond  the  i)oint,  I,  described  in  §  24.  Invert  the 
diagram  thus  drawn  relatively  to  right  and  left,  and  fit  it  on  to  the 
diagram,  fig.  9,  extended  rightwards  so  far  as  to  show  no  perceptible 
motion ;  say  to  a;  =  200,  or  300,  of  our  scale.  The  diagram  thus 
compounded  represents  the  water  surface  at  time  25t  after  a  com- 
mencoraent  correspondin^jly  compounded  from  fig.  8,  and  another 


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1903-4.]     Lord  Kelvin  on  a  Free  Frocessian  of  Waves,  325 

similar  figure  drawn  to  represent  the  rear  of  the  finite  (two-ended) 
l)rocession  which  we  are  now  considering. 

§  30.  Direct  attack  on  the  problem  thus  indirectly  solved,  gives, 
for  the  case  of  1000  wave-crests  in  the  beginning,  the  following 
explicit  solution, 

i»'JO00 

-i=  ^(-im*-*.o (58), 

where  i/r  is  a  function  found  according  to  the  principles  indicated  in 
§  4  above,  to  express  the  same  surface-displacement  as  our  function 
<;^  of  §  12,  and  the  proper  velocities  below  the  surface  to  give,  in  the 
sum,  a  right  ward  procession  of  waves.  Our  present  solution  shows 
how  rapidly  the  initial  sinusoidality  of  the  head  and  front  of  a 
one-ended  infinite  procession,  travelling  rightwards,  is  disturbed  in 
virtue  of  the  hydrokinetic  circumstances  of  a  procession  invading 
still  water.  Our  solution,  and  the  item  towards  it  represented  in 
figs.  6  and  7,  and  in  fig.  2  of  §  6  above,  show  how  rapidly  fresh 
crests  are  formed.  The  whole  investigation  shows  how  very  far 
from  finding  any  definite  "  group-velocity  "  we  are,  in  any  initially 
given  group  of  two,  three,  four,  or  any  number,  however  great,  of 
waves.  I  hope  in  some  future  communication  to  the  Royal 
Society  of  Ekiinburgh  to  return  to  this  subject  in  connection  with 
the  energy  principle  set  forth  by  Osborne  Reynolds,*  and  the  inter- 
ferential theory  of  Stokes  t  and  Rayleigh  {  giving  an  absolutely 
definite  group- velocity  in  their  case  of  an  infinite  number  of 
mutually  supporting  groups.  But  my  first  hydrokinetic  duty, 
the  performance  of  which  I  hope  may  not  be  long  deferred,  is 
to  fulfil  my  promises  regarding  ship-waves,  and  circular  waves 
travelling  in  all  directions  from  a  place  of  disturbance  in  water. 

§  31.  The  following  tables  show  some  of  the  most  important 
numbers  which  have  been  calculated,  and  which  may  be  useful 
in  farther  prosecution  of  the  subject  of  the  present  paper. 

*  Nature^  vol.  xvi,  1877,  pp.  343-4. 

t  Smith's  Prize  Paper,  Camh.  Univ,  Calendar,  1876. 

t  Sound,  ed.  1,  vol.  i.,  1877,  pp.  246-7. 


[Table  I. 


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326  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh.  [sess. 


Table  I. 
P 


0 

1 

2 
8 

4 

5 

6 

7 

8 

9 

10 
11 

I  13 
14 
15 
16 
17 
18 
19 
20 
21 
22 
23 
24 
25 
2() 
27  I 
2S 

29  I 

30  I 

31  , 
32 
33  - 


1-4142 
1-0987 
-8045 
•6452 
-5490 
-4843 
•4375 
•4018 
•3784 
•3502 
•3308 
•8142 
•2999 
•2874 
•2763 
•2663 
•2574 
•2498 
•2420 
•2352 
•2290 
-2232 
"2179 
•2129 
•2082 
•2039 
•1998 
•1959 
•1923 
•1888 
•1855 
•1824 
•1795 
•1767 


0)=-D(0,OJ 

X 

<»(«,0) 

D(-l,0)=-D(o,() 

Xa:,0) 

34 

D(x,u) 

•8155 

•1740 

•0026 

•2942 

35 

•1714 

•0025 

•1698 

36 

•1689 

•0023 

•0962 

37 

•1666 

•0028 

•0647 

38 

-1643 

•0022 

•0468 

39  1 

•1621 

•0021 

•0357 

40  , 

•1600 

-0020 

•0284 

41  1 

•1580 

•0019 

•0232 

42 

•1561 

•0019 

•0194 

48  ' 

•1642 

•0018 

•0166 

44 

-1624 

•0017 

•0143 

45 

•1507 

•0017 

•0125 

46 

•1490 

•0016 

•0111 

47 

■1474 

•0016 

•0100 

48 

-1468 

•0016 

•0089 

49 

•1443 

-0016 

-0081 

50 

•1428 

•0014 

•0073 

51 

•1414 

-0014 

•0068 

52 

•1400 

•0014 

•0062 

63 

•1886 

•0013 

•0058 

54 

•1373 

•0018 

•0053 

56 

•1860 

•0012 

•0050 

56 

•1348 

-0012 

•0047 

57 

-1336 

•0912 

•0043 

58 

-1324 

•0011 

•0041 

59 

•1318 

•0011 

•0039 

60 

■1302 

•0011 

-0036 

61 

•1291 

•0011 

•0035 

62 

-1280 

-0010 

-0033 

63 

-1270 

-0010 

•0031 

64 

•1260 

•0010 

-0029 

65 

•1250 

•0010 

-0028 

66 

•1240 

-0009 

•0027 

67 

•1231 

0009 

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1903-4.]     Lord  Kelvin  07i  a  Free  Procession  of  Waves,  327 


Table  II. 


t  =  25t  ;  T  =  ^TT ;  x  =  ^^ 


15 

16 
17 
18 
19 
•JO 
21 
'2*2 
23 
24 

2r» 

26 
27 
28 
29 
30 
31 
32 
33 
34 
35 
36 
37 
i  38 
39 
40 
41 
42 
43 
44 
45 
46 
47 
48 
49 
50 
51 
52 
53 
54 
55 
56 
57 
58 
59 
60 
61 
62 
63 
64 
65 
66 
67 
68 


...  (!*•)_ . 

41  IT +  133"  43' 

39»+    30'  41' 

:5(3ir  +  16r  31' 

34ir  +  157°  22' 

33t  H    ir  3' 

31ir+    77'  25' 

29jr  hl7r  23' 

28ir-hl09^  24' 

27ir+    68'  -20' 

26ir+    45*  33' 

I5ir+    39'  6' 

24,r+    46**  38' 

23ir+   67"  0' 

>2ir+   98"  45' 

21»  +  140-'  41' 

1t+    ir  47' 

;0t+  ir  11' 

9ir  +  138"  6' 

9ir-h   C:'  50' 

8r  +  lir  49' 

.8ir+    17"  29' 

7»-  +  108"  23' 

7ir+    24*  6' 

6ir  +  124*  14' 

6ir+   48*  27' 

5ir  +  156*  27' 

L5ir+   87'  58' 

5»f   22*  44' 

4ir+140*  32' 

4t+   81°  8' 

4ir+    24*  24' 

i3ir  +  150*  6' 

3ir-f   98*  9' 

3ir+    48*  20' 

3ir+      0*  82' 

L2ir  +  134*  40' 

2ir+    90°  36' 

•2t  H    48°  10' 

2ir+      T  2.'/ 

Iir-fl48*  9' 

lir  +  110'  IS' 

lir+    73'  48' 

1t-H   38"  35' 

lir+      4'  34' 

[0ir  +  15r  43' 

.Or +  119*  67' 

Oir+   89*  14' 

0»+   69*  30' 

0ir+   80*  43' 

0ir+     2*  50' 

9ir  +  155*  48' 

9ir+129*  36' 

9ir  +  104*  9' 

9ir+   79*  28' 


T'^^n/I^K?)'"^^''^"^' 


•0002 
•0005 
•0011 
•0024 
•0044 
•0075 
•0118 
•0174 
■0246 
•0333 
•0434 
•0550 
•0679 
•0820 
•0917 
•1131 
•1299 
•1472 
•1651 
•1832 
•2016 
•2'201 
■2385 
•2569 
■2752 
•2934 
•3112 
•3287 
•3459 
•3629 
•3794 
■3956 
•1112 
•4267 
■4416 
•4560 
•4702 
•4840 
•4973 
•5101 
•5226 
•5348 
•5464 
•5580 
•5690 
•5797 
•5900 
•6001 
•6098 
•6193 
•6284 
•6872 
•6469 
•6540 


^x,  25r) 

D(a-,  25t) 

•0000 

+  •OOOI 

-  •oooi 

-  ^0002 

+  -0001 

-  ^0002 

+  •ooos 

+  ^0006 

- ^0003 

+  ^0020 

-  •00-23 

-  -0018 

-  -0005 

-  ^0055 

+  -0050 

+  •0117 

-  -0067 

-  0136 

+  -0069 

+  -0146 

-  -0077 

-  •oiss 

+  0111 

+  -0281 

-  -01 70 

-  ^0386 

+  -0216 

+  -0377 

-  -0161 

-  •OlOl 

-  -0060 

- ^0372 

+  •0312 

+  -0558 

-•0246 

-  0032 

-  -0214 

-  0626 

+  ^041 2 

+  ^0267 

+  •0145 

+  0637 

-  ^0492 

-  0266 

-  -0226 

-  ^0713 

+  •0487 

+  -0021 

+  ^0466 

+  •0728 

-  0262 

+  •0425 

-  ^0687 

-  -0410 

-  ^0277 

-  -0761 

+  ^0474 

-  ^0290 

+  -0764 

+  ^0434 

+  •0330 

+  -0741 

-•0411 

+  ^0429 

-  -0840 

-  •oigo 

-  ^0650 

-  ^0642 

-  ^0008 

-  ^0657 

+  ^0649 

"  ^0282 

+  0931 

+  ^0224 

+  ^0707 

+  -0582 

+  •01  ^25 

+  -0643 

-•0518 

+  •0417 

-  -0935 

+  -0035 

-  '0970 

-  •0332 

-  0638 

-  ^0556 

-  •0082 

-  ^0578 

+  ^0496 

-  -0421 

+  ^0917 

-  ^0162 

+  ^1069 

+  •0141 

+  -0928 

+  -0373 

+  -0555 

+  -0501 

+  ^0054 

+  ^0506 

-  ^0452 

+  -0403 

-  -0856 

+  -0226 

-  •lOSl 

+  ^0022 

-  -1103 

{Issiud  snparatchf  August  22,  1904.) 


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328  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh,  [sess. 


Some  Results  in  the  Mathematical  Theory  of  Seiches. 
By  Professor  Chrystal. 

(Read  JuTy  18,  1904.     MS.  received  July  29,  1904.) 

{Abstract.) 

I  propose  in  this  preliminary  communication  to  lay  before  the 
Society  some  results  of  investigations  in  the  theory  of  Seiches  m 
a  lake  whose  line  of  maximum  depth  is  approximately  straight, 
and  whose  depth,  cross  section,  and  surface  breadth  do  not  vary 
rapidly  from  point  to  point. 

As  the  seiche  disturbance  is  small  compared  with  the  length  of 
the  lake,  I  shall  make  the  assumptions  usual  in  the  theory  of  long 
waves : — viz.,  that  the  squares  of  the  displacements  and  of  tlieir 
derivatives  are  negligible. 

The  a:-axis,  O  X,  is  taken  in  the  undisturbed  level  of  the  lake, 
in  the  average  direction  of  the  line  of  maximum  depth ;  the  c-axis, 
0  Z,  is  taken  vertically  upwards.  The  horizontal  and  vertical  dis- 
placements of  a  water  particle  originally  in  the  undisturbed  surface, 
at  a  distance  x  from  the  origin,  are  denoted  by  f  and  ^.  A(x)  and 
h{jc)  are  used  to  denote  the  area  and  the  surface  breadth  of  tlic 
cross  section  at  a  distance  x  from  O. 

AVe  suppose  that  the  vertical  disturbance  at  every  point  in  the 
surface  line  of  any  cross  section  of  the  lake  is  the  same ;  in  other 
words,  we  neglect  the  dynamical  effect  of  any  flow  perpendicular 
to  0  X  due  to  the  gradual  increase  or  diminution  of  the  area  of 
the  cross  section  of  the  lake.  As  in  the  theory  of  long  waves,  the 
vertical  acceleration  is  also  neglected  ;  and  we  also  neglect  the 
(usually  small)  effect  due  to  the  shelving  of  the  shore. 

With  these  assumptions,  the  equations  which  determine  i  and  ^ 
are  found  to  be 


=  ^^W-^. (1) 


C^2 


aw 


f  -  -  s <^) 


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1903-4.]  ProL  Chrystal  o)i  Mathematical  Tkeoinj  of  Seiches.  329 

where  2<  =  A(ar)  ^^v^ldx  b{x) ,  cr(r)  =  A{z)  h{x) ;  and  (j  and  t  have 

the  usual  meanings. 

A  natural*  seiche  of  frequency  n  is  therefore  deterraine<l  by  the 
equations 

A(a;)f=<i  =  P8inw/  +  Qcosw/,     ....     (3); 
where  P  and  Q  are  solutions  of 

Since  ^{v)  is  a  slowly  varying  function  of  r,  wo  might  take  it  to  be 
either  a  linear  or  a  quadratic  integi-al  function  of  v.  On  the  former 
assumption  the  solution  of  (4)  is  found  to  depend  on  BesseFs  Func- 
tions. It  is  found,  however,  that  the  assumption  a(v)  =  A(l  -  v-/a^) 
is  more  convenient  for  obtaining  approximate  representations  of 
the  cases  that  occur  in  nature.  The  solution  in  tliis  case  is  found 
to  depend  on  certain  functions  which  wc  may  call  the  Seiche 
Functions,  defined,  for  -  l<w<  + 1,  by  the  following  convergent 
series : — 

r       ^      r{r-\.2)     .      .•(f-1.2)  0' -  3.4)    , 

c     ^     r(r--i.3)    ,     c(c-2.3)(6'-4.5)   . 
S(c,f.)=«;- 2:3,^3  +  23  ^4  gt.-    2.3  X  4.5  X  6.7    "^•■*--    '    •    ' 

,,,       ,     ,       '•     o     c(c+1.2)    ^     r{c -h  1.2)  {c  + 3 A)   ^ 
(£(c,t.)^l-j;^t.2+j-2~3^tr^--^2^3^~5,    ,.«+..., 

^,      ,  <•     3     c(c4-2.3)    ,     c(c  +  2.3)(c  +  4.5)    . 

c(c,t.)  =  r.-g^^.3  +  __--^^^,,.,    2.3x4.5x6.7    «''+•••• 

The  functions  C  and  S  are  synectic  integrals  of  tlie  differential 
equation 


*  As  opposed  to  ^forced  seiche,  whose  period  depends  jwirtly  on  the  period  of 
the  disturbing  agency.  Some  of  the  seiches  on  Lake  Erie  arc.  I  believe,  of  this 
nature. 


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330  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh,  [sRis. 

and  are  connected  by  the  relation 

C(c,t^)S'(c,tt7)-CXott7)S(c,t^?)=l     .     .     .     (6),* 

where  the  dashes  denote  differentiation  with  respect  to  w.  On 
account  of  the  fact  that  C  and  S  have  certain  of  tlie  properties  of 
cos  w  and  sin «;,  and  in  a  certain  limiting  case  reduce  to  these 
functions,  we  may  call  them  the  seiche-cosine  and  the  sticlie-sine 
respectively.  From  another  point  of  view  they  are  limiting  case* 
of  the  hypergeometric  function  ;  but  from  this  fact  no  practical 
advantage  has  been  found  hitherto. 

In  like  manner  S(c,  w)  and  (2(c,  w),  which  we   may  call  the 
hyperbolic  seiche-cosine  and  hyperbolic  seiche-siiie,  are  integrals  of 

(i+»^^;S+cP=o,      (7) 

and 

{i{c,w)Z\c,w)-{^\c,w)^{c,w)^\     ...     (8) 

For  the  particular  values  w  =  1  and  w  —  i  (where  %  is  the  imaginary 
unit)  we  have 


C(c.I)   =   (l-i-2)(l-3^)(l-5y J 

6(<-..-)   =   0^iy0^o)0^5?6) I 

€(<:,.■)    =<l  +  2?3)  0^0)0^6-7) ' 


(0) 


(IU> 


It  follows  from  Sturm's  Oscillation  Theorem  regarding  the  solu- 
tions of  a  linear  differential  equation,  such  as  (5),  that,  for  any 
given  real  value  of  t;  -^  1 ,  there  are  an  infinite  number  of  positive 
real  values  of  c  which  satisfy  the  equations 

C(e,i-)  =  0,         S(c,v)  =  Oj 
(i(c,«')  =  0,       S(c,v)  =  0; 

and  that  the  roots  of  either  of  the  equations  of  one  of  these  pairs 
separate  the  roots  of  the  other. 

*  The  analogue  of  the  relation  co8'j;  +  sin^  =  l  for  the  circular  functions. 


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1903-4.]  Prof.  Chrystal  on  Mathematical  Theory  of  Seiches,  331 

It  appears  at  once  from  (9)  that  the  real  positive  roots  of 
C(c,  l)  =  Oare 

r=  1.2,   3.4,    5.6, Le,  2,    12,    30,     .     .     (11) 

andof  S(c,  1)  =  0 

c=2.3,    4.5,    6.7, i.e.  6,    20,    42,     .     .     (12) 

The  roots  of  @(c,  1)  =  0  and  @(c,  1)  =  0  are  neither  commensurable 
nor  so  easily  found.  A  somewhat  laborious  arithmetical  calcula- 
tion, in  which  I  have  been  kindly  assisted  by  Dr  Burgess  and  Mr 
E.  M.  Horsburgh,  has  given  for  the  smallest  positive  root  of  (S(c,l) 
=  0  c  =  2-77  .... ,  and  for  the  corresponding  root  of  (S(c,  1)  =  0 
c  =  12.34 

It  should  also  be  observed  that,  when  c  has  one  of  the  values 
(11),  C(c,  v)  reduces  to  an  integral  function  of  v;  wid  the  same 
happens  to  S(c,  v)  when  c  has  one  of  the  values  (12). 

If  we  assume  <r(v)  =  A(l  +  v^la^\  the  equation  for  P  is 

which,  if  we  put  w  =  vja ,  and  take 

reduces  to  either  (5)  or  (6).  Hence  A{x)i  can  be  expressed  in 
terms  of  the  seiche  functions ;  and  f  is  given  by 


a  dw 


In  the  case  where  the  breadth  of  the  lake  is  constant  and  the 
cross  section  rectangular,  but  the  depth  variable,  say  h{x)  = 
h(l  -x^ja-),  we  can  replace  the  variable  v  by  x.  The  constants  h 
and  a  are  then  linear  magnitudes  (whose  meanings  are  obvious) 
instead  of  a  volume  and  an  area  as  in  the  general  case.  It  will  be 
observed,  therefore,  that  all  the  general  features  of  the  phenomena 
of  seiches  are  to  be  foimd  in  this  more  special  case,  regarding  which 
we  now  give  some  particulars. 


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332 


Proceed  uiys  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinhcrgh.  [seb^. 


Lake  with  Symmetric  Longitudinal  Section  of  Parabolic 
Concave  Form  h{x)  =  A  x  (1  -  jc^  ^2j 

If  c-=v{v-{- 1) ,  and  T^  be  the  period  of  the  v-iiodal  seiche,  then 
T^  =  'Iirhi  =  27ralJ(Cyg/i)  =  irlij{  v{v  +  1  )yh) }     .     .     (13) 
where  /(  =  2a)  is  the  whole  length  of  tlie  lake. 

a  O  a  A 


Fig.  1. 
Fji*  SL'iches  Avith  odd  and  even  numbers  of  nodes  we  have 


and 


A  C(r2,_,,»r) 


l-^6-'-* 


sin  nt ,        X.^  'a  ^^^'^'-^ » *^^  ^^"  "' ' 


S         a 


(14) 


(15) 


respectively. 


Un  I  NODAL  Seiche. 
.,  =  1.2;        Ti  =  7r//V(2^//) (IH) 


Node 


A  2Aa; 

^=  -J-  sin  n^ ,       (;  =  -^  sin  id , 


(17) 


If  1,^  denote  the  maximum  horizontal  and  vertical  displace- 
ments of  a  particle  on  the  surface  at  the  end  of  the  lake,  and  ^  the 
maximum  horizontal  velocity  of  displacement,  then 

l^lllih,  l^irmh\ (18) 

It  should  be  observed  that  here,  and  in  the  cases  that  follow 
under  the  present  head,  the  boundary  condition  at  A  and  A'  is  not 
that  i  =•  0 ,  but  that  the  motion  be  tangential  to  the  shore. 


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1903-4.]  Prof.  Chrystal  on  Mathematical  Theory  of  Seiches.  333 

BiNODAL  Seiche. 

C5  =  2.3;     T2  =  7rZ/7(67/i),     ....     (19) 

5  =    -  sm  w^ ,         C  =        -r. ^^  «in  w^ ,     .     .     (20) 

Nodes  .T=  ±a/V3-  ±  -HT  .  .  .  a (21) 

We  have 

T,7T.  =  72/^6  =  -574 (22) 

Hence  the  period  of  the  binodal  seiche  in  a  concave  lake  of 
symmetric  paralx)lic  section  is  greater  than  half  the  period  of 
the  uninodal  seiche. 

Also  the  nodes  are  more  than  half  way  towards  the  ends ;  i.e. 
they  are  displaced  towards  the  shallows. 

If  ^ ,  ^,  and  \  have  the  same  meanings  as  before,  we  have 

|=Z^/4/i,     i^irltl2hT^_ (23) 

at  the  ends  of  the  lake.  At  a  node  the  values  of  f  and  ^  are 
reduced  in  the  ratio  '57  .  .  .  :  1.  At  the  centre  ^=0  at  all 
times  ;  and  I  has  half  its  value  at  the  end  of  the  lake. 

Trixodal  Seiche. 

^3  =  3.4;      T3  =  7r7/V(l-2r//0. 
^=  A^(a2  -  5j:2)  sin  nt,        ^=  ^{V2(i^x  -  20u.-3)  sin  n/,     .     (24) 

Xodes        x  =  0,    x=  ±aj3/Jb=-  ±-7746 a,     .     .     .     (2.^)) 

'yTi  =  N/2/x/12  =  .4082 (26) 

QUADRINODAL    SbICHE. 

r,=  4.5;  T,  =  7r//V(20r///), (27) 

f=Jl^(3a^ -7.^2)  sin  n/,   t^^^T'J -3a*  +  30a^u^^3r)x^)m\vt  (28) 

^Vles  a;- ±.3400.  .  .rt,     ±-8621 a,        .     .     (29) 

T/l\  =  .3162 (30) 


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334  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinhiryh.  [sbss. 


QUINQUINODAL  SbIOHS. 


^     fia* 
^=  -^(30a4^-  140aV+  126r5)  sin  nt, 


(31) 


(32) 


Nodes 


a:  =  0,     ±.5384 a,     ±.9058...  a,    .     .     (33) 

T,/Ti  =  .2582 (34) 


Lake  with  Symmetric  Longitudinal  Section  of  Parabolic 
Convex  Form  h(x)  =  hx{l+sc^/a^). 

A  0 


Fio.  2. 


If  q,  Cj,  Cj iv   ....   be  the  real  positive  roots 

taken  in  order  of  magnitude  of  the  equations  @(c,  1)  =  0  and 
3(<J,  1)  =  0,  so  that  Ci  is  the  smallest  positive  root  of  Ci(<^,  1)  =  0, 
Cg  the  smallest  positive  root  of  S(c,  1)  =  0,  and  so  on,  then,  for 
seiches  with  an  odd  number  of  nodes, 

^=X^-W~«'"'"'     r=-|®'(f-..«')8m«/,.     .     (35) 

for  seiches  with  an  even  number  of  nodes 

^     B  S(C2,_,,tr)    ,      ,      ^         A^,, 

^  =  X  ~TVw^  ^'"^  "*' '     ^"  -  "^^  ^^^-^'  '^^  ^'^  nt,  .     .     (36) 

Uninodal  Seiche. 
Ci  =  2.77...,     Z^^ttII  J{%11  ...gh),     .     .     (37) 

Hence  Xi<Ti;  that  is  to  say,  for  the  same  central  depth  and 
the  same  length,  the  uninodal  period  is  less  when  the  lake  is 
convex  than  when  it  is  concave. 


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1903-4.]  Prof.  Chrystal  on  Mathematical  Theoi^  of  Seiches,  335 

BiNODAL  Seiche. 
C2=12.34,  3:2  =  7rW(12.34...^;i),  .     .     .     (38 

Hence  %^<T^, 

Also  2;.,/2:i=  V{2.77  .  .  . /12.34.  .  .  }  =  .474.  .  .  (39) 
In  other  words,  in  a  convex  lake  of  symmetric  parabolic  section 
the  period  of  the  binodal  seiche  is  less  than  half  the  period  of  the 
uninodal  seiche. 

It  follows,  of  course,  from  the  fact  that  the  seiche  functions 
degenerate  into  the  circular  functions  when  the  curvature  of  the 
bottom  is  infinitely  small,  that  when  the  lake  bottom  is  flat 
T.,  Tj  =  ^,  etc.,  as  in  the  case  of  vibrating  rods,  or  strings. 

Case  of  Concave  Lake  with  Unsymmetrio  Biparabolic 
Section. 


The  depth  from  0  to  A  is  given  by  /i(ic)  =  7i(l  -  i^^^a^) ;  from 

If  w  =  xia,  w'  =  x:a  ;  c  =  n^a'^lgh,  c'  =  n^a^lfjh,  then  for  the  two 
portions  0  A  and  0  A'  we  have  respectively 

^h(l  -  w^)  =  ^^  ;^  ^--{ S{c  ,  l)C{c  ,  w)  -  C(c ,  1)S(.  ,  w)}mi  nt , 

C=  -^^f^i){S(r,l)C'(c,f^)-C(c,l)SX<^,fr)}sinn^;  .  (40) 
and 
^h{\  -  ,.'=)=  --^  {^c',  \)C{c\  w)  +  C{c,  1)S(<-',  rc')}sin  nt, 

r  -  -  ,7S^){«(''''  1)  ^y^  «'')  +  C(c',  \)^'{c,  tr')}sin  nt    .    (41) 


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336  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edirtburgh,  [ 

The  values  of  C  and  C  which  determine  the  periods  are  given 
by  dc  =  a^la^  together  with  the  period-equation 

aC(c,l)S(c,l)  +  aC(c',l)S(c,l)  =  0      .      .     (42) 

If  we  put  a"^c  =  c^c  =  n^a^a'^lgh  —  z,  the  period  equation  may  be 
written 

"(•-ii.)(>-5:b)   ■•■(•-w.X'-ii-.) 

*»■('-  ,.i-0('  -  5:^-.)  ■  •  ('  -  s.)('  -  4..y  ■••-»•■(«> 


Unsymmetric  Lake  with  onb  Shallow  and  two  Maximum 
Depths. 


/  w 


h       l^      Ti'     ri*     O       d      J>      I,      3  ^ 


Fig.  4. 

A  good  approximation  to  the  form  of  lake  section  in  many  cases 
that  occur  in  nature  can  be  obtained  by  piecing  together  six 
parabolas,  as  in  figure  (4),  so  as  to  form  one  continuous  curve.  If 
B  be  the  minimum^  and  h  and  li  the  two  maximum  depths,  D  and 
D'  the  points  of  inflexion ;  A  B  =  a^,  A'  B'  =  a  j,  B  D  =  ^,  B'  D'  =  h\ 
O  D  =  6?,  0  D'  =  iVy  then  we  may  represent  the  portions  A  B,  B  D, 
I)  0,  0  D;  D'  B',  B'  A'  by  the  six  parabolas  \—1i(x)  =  /i(l  -  x^la^) ; 
li{x)^li{y'X^la^)\  h{x)  =  s(l+xVa^^);  h(x)=^8(l +zVa^^);  ?i\x) 
=  h\l  -  xVa\^) ;  h{z)  =  h\l  - xVa\^), 

The  conditions  of  continuity  lead  to 


a.^  =  hh{d  +  h)j(h  -  8\         a^  -  ^d(d  +  h)l(li  -  «) ; 


(44) 


All  the  magnitudes  marked  in  the  figure  may  be  arbitrarily 
determined ;  but  after  tliis  has  been  done  the  depths  at  the  points 
of  inflexion  are  not  at  our  disposal. 

The  formulae  for  i  and  i  and  the  period-equation  have  been 
worked   out   for   this   case.      I'hey   involve   all   the   four  seiche- 


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To  prevent  delay,  authors  residing  abroad  should  appoint  some  one 
residing  in  this  country  to  correct  their  proofs. 

4.  Additions  to  a  Paper  after  it  has  been  finally  handed  in  for 
publication,  if  accepted  by  the  Council,  will  be  treated  and  dated  as 
separate  communications,  and  may,  or  may  not,  be  printed  immediately 
after  the  original  paper. 

5.  Brief  Abstracts  op  Transactions  Papers  will  be  published  in 
the  Proceedings,  provided  they  are  sent  along  with  the  original  paper. 

6.  Separate  Issue  of  Reprints;  Author's  Free  and  Additional 
Copies. — As  soon  as  the  final  revise  of  a  Transactions  paper  has  been 
returned,  or  as  soon  as  the  sheet  in  which  the  last  part  of  a  Proceedings 
paper  appears  is  ready  for  press,  a  certain  number  of  separate  copies  or 
reprints,  in  covers  bearing  the  title  of  the  paper  and  the  name  of  the 
author,  are  printed  off  and  placed  on  sale.  The  date  of  such  separate 
publication  will  be  printed  on  each  paper. 

The  author  receives  fifty  of  these  reprints  free,  and  may  have  any 
reasonable  number  of  additional  copies  at  a  fixed  scale  of  prices  which 
will  be  furnished  by  the  printer,  who  will  charge  him  with  the  cost. 
To  prevent  disappointment,  especially  if  the  paper  contains  platef^, 
the  author  should,  immediately  after  receiving  his  first  proof,  notify 
to  the  printer  the  number  of  additional  copies  required. 

7.  Index  Slips. — In  order  to  facilitate  the  compilation  of  Subject 
Indices,  and  to  secure  that  due  attention  tu  the  important  points  in  a 
paper  shall  be  given  in  General  Catalogues  of  Scientific  Literature  and 
in  Abstracts  by  Periodicals,  every  author  is  requested  to  return  to  the 
Secretary  along  with  his  final  proof  a  brief  index  (on  the  model  given 
below),  of  the  points  in  it  which  he  considers  new  or  important.  These 
indices  will  be  edited  by  the  Secretary,  and  incorporated  in  Separate 
Index  Slips,  to  be  issued  with  each  part  of  the  Proceedings  and 
Transactions. 


MODEL  INDEX. 

Schafer,  E.  A. — On  the  Existence  within  the  Liver  Cells  of  Channels  which  can 
be  directly  injected  from  the  Blood-vessels.    Proc.  Roy.  Soc.  Edin.,  vol      , 
1902,  pp. 
Cells,  Liver, — Intra-cellular  Canaliculi  in. 

K  A  Schafer.    Proc.  Roy.  Soc.  Edin.,  vol.        ,  1902,  pp. 
Liver, — Injection  within  CeUs  of. 

E.  A.  Schafer.    Proc.  Roy.  Soc  Edin.,  vol.         ,  1902,  pp. 


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iv  CONTENTS. 


PAGE 


Effect  of  Transverse  Magnetization  on  the  Resistance  of 
Nickel  at  High  Temperatures.  By  Professor  C.  G. 
Knott,  ......       292 

(Issued  separately  July  30,  1904.) 

Observations  on  some  Aged  Specimens  of  Sagartia  troglo- 
dytes, and  on  the  Duration  of  life  in  Coelenterates. 
By  J.  H.  Ash  WORTH,  D.Sc,  Lecturer  in  Invertebrate 
Zoology  in  the  University  of  Edinburgh,  and  Nblson 
Annandale,  B.A.,  Deputy  -  Superintendent  of  the 
Indian  Museum,  Calcutta.  Communicated  by  Pro- 
fessor J.  C.  EwART,  M.D.,  F.R.S.,  .  .  .295 
[Issued  ftejKtratch/  July  21,  1904.) 

Note  on  the  Molecular  Condition  of  Nickel  (and  Iron) 
demagnetised  by  xlecreasing  Reversals.  By  Jambs 
Russell,         .  /         .  .  .       809 

{Issued  separately  August  22,  1904.) 

On  the  Front  ami  Rear  of  a  Free  Procession  of  Waves  in 
Deep  Wate/  {Continued  from  Proc.  R.S.E.,  Feb.  Ist, 
1904.)    B^  Lord  Kelvin,       .  .  .311 

/       {Issued  separately  August  22,  1904.) 

Some  Results  in  the  Mathematical  Theory  of  Seiches.     By 

Professor  Chrystal,    .....       328 
{Issued  separalehj  October  6,  1904.) 


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rt.  - 

•Jf! 

PROCEEDINGS 

OF  THE 

ROYAL  SOCIETY  OF  EDINBURGH. 

SESSION  1904-5. 


No.V.l  VOL.    XXV.  [Pp.  337-400. 


CONTENTS. 

PAGE 

A  New  Form  of  Spectrophotometer.  By  J.  R.  Milne, 
B.Sc,  Carnegie  Scholar  in  Natural  Philosophy, 
Edinhnrgh  University,  .  .  .  .338 

{Issued  separately  November  5,  1904.) 

A  New  Form  of  Juxtapositor  to  hring  into  Accurate 
Contact  the  Edges  of  the  two  Beams  of  light 
used  in  Spectrophotometry,  with  an  application  to 
Polarimetry.  By  J.  R.  Milne,  B.Sc  ,  Carnegie 
Scholar  in  Natural  Philosophy,  .  .  ,       355 

(Issued  separately  January  17,  1905.) 

The  Three-line   Determinants   of   a   Six-by-Three   Array. 

By  Thomas  Muir,  LL.D.,        .  .  .  .364 

{Issued  separately  January  20,  1905. ) 

[Continued  on  page  iv  of  Cover, 


^EDINBURGH  : 


PuBLisHKD  BY  ROBERT  GRANT  &  SON,  107  Princes  Street,  and 
WILLIAMS  &  NORGATE,  U  Henrietta  Street,  Covent  Garden,  London. 

MDCCCCV. 
Price  Four  Shillings. 


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BEGULATIONS  REGARDING  THE  PUBLICATION  OF 
PAPERS  IN  THE  PROCEEDINGS  AND  TRANS- 
ACTIONS OF  THE  SOCIETY. 

The  Council  beg  to  direct  ihe  attention  of  authors  of  communications  to 
the  Society  to  the  following  Regulations,  which  have  been  drawn  np  in 
order  to  accelerate  the  publication  of  the  Proceedings  and  Transactions, 
and  to  utilise  as  widely  and  as  fairly  as  possible  the  funds  which  the 
Society  devotos  to  the  publication  of  Scientific  and  Literary  Researches. 

1.  MANUSCiiiPT  OP  Papers. — As  soon  as  any  paper  has  been  passeil 
for  publication,  either  in  its  original  or  in  any  altered  form,  and  has  been 
made  ready  for  publication  by  the  author,  it  is  sent  to  the  printer, 
whether  it  has  been  read  or  not. 

The  *  copy  *  should  be  written  on  large  sheets  of  paper,  on  one  side 
only,  and  the  pages  should  be  clearly  numbered.  The  MS.  must  be 
easily  legible,  preferably  typewritten,  and  must  be  absolutely  in  its  final 
form  for  printing ;  so  that  corrections  in  proof  shall  be  as  few  as  possible, 
and  shall  not  cause  overrunning  in  the  lines  or  pages  of  the  proof.  All 
tables  of  contents,  references  to  plates  or  illustrations  in  the  text,  etc., 
must  be  in  their  proper  places,  with  the  page  •numbers  left  blank;  and 
spaces  must  be  indicated  for  the  insertion  of  illustrations  that  are  to 
appear  in  the  text. 

2.  Illustrations. — All  illustrations  must  be  drawn  in  a  form  im- 
mediately suitable  for  reproduction;  and  such  illustrations  as  can  be 
reproduced  by  photographic  processes  should,  so  far  as  possible,  be 
preferred.  Drawings  to  be  reproduced  as  line  blocks  should  be  made 
with  Indian  ink  (deadened  with  yellow  if  of  bluish  tone),  preferably  on 
fine  white  bristol  board,  free  from  folds  or  creases ;  smooth,  clean  lines 
or  sharp  dots,  but  no  washes  or  colours  should  be  used.  If  the  drawings 
are  done  on  a  large  scale,  to  be  afterwards  reduced  by  photography,  any 
lettering  or  other  legend  must  be  on  a  corresponding  scale. 

If  an  author  finds  it  inconvenient  to  furnish  such  drawings,  the  Society 
will  have  the  figures  re-drawn  at  his  expense ;  but  this  will  cause  delay. 

When  the  illustrations  are  to  form  plates,  a  scheme  for  the  arrange- 
ment of  the  figures  (in  quarto  plates  for  the  Transactions,  in  octavo  for 
the  Proceedings)  must  be  given,  and  numbering  and  lettering  indicated. 

3.  Proofs. — In  general,  a  first  proof  and  a  revise  of  each  paper  will 
be  sent  to  the  author,  whose  address  should  be  indicated  on  the  MS. 
If  further  proofs  are  required,  owing  to  corrections  or  alterations  for 
which  the  printer  is  not  responsible,  the  expense  of  such  proofs  and 
corrections  will  be  charged  against  the  author. 

All  proofs  must,  if  possible,  be  returned  within  one  week,  addressed  to 
The  Secretary y  Royal  Society^  Mound,  Edinburgh,  and  not  to  the  printer. 

[CojUinucd  on  page  iii  of  Cover. 

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1908-4.]  Prof.  Chrystal  on  MathenuUical  Theoi^y  of  Seiches,  337 

f onctions ;  and  are  naturally  somewhat  complicated.  We  therefore 
omit  them  from  this  preliminary  communication. 

In  a  more  detailed  paper  which  I  propose  to  submit  hereafter  to 
the  Society  I  shall  give  particulars  regarding  the  establishment  of 
the  above  results,  further  developments  of  their  application,  a 
discussion  of  the  agreement  of  the  results  in  particular  cases  with 
observation,  and  a  comparison  of  the  above  theory  with  that  given 
by  Du  Boys  in  his  "  Essai  Theorique  sur  les  Seiches  "  {Arch,  d,  Sc. 
Phys,  et  Nat,  d.  Geneve,  P^r.  iii.  t.  xxv.,  1891). 

In  the  meantime  I  cherish  a  hope  that  the  above  summary  may 
help  to  encourage  and  to  guide  the  ardent  observers  who  are  now 
engaged  in  procuring  for  us  accurate  data  regarding  the  interesting 
natural  phenomena  with  which  they  deal* 


(Issued  separately  October  6,  1904.) 


PBGC.  ROT.  SOC.  KDIN.— VOL.  XXV.  22 


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338  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  EdvrJburgh.        [i 


A  New  Form  of  Spectrophotometer.  By  J.  R  Milne, 
B.Sc.,  Carnegie  Scholar  in  Natural  Philoeophy,  Edinburgh 
University. 

(Read  July  4,  1904.     MS.  received  Aogast  1,  1904.) 

The  present  paper  is  the  continuation  of  a  note  sent  to  the 
Society  in  July  of  last  year,*  and  is  for  the  purpose  of  describing 
the  developed  form  of  the  spectrophotometer  whose  principle  was 
indicated  in  that  communication. 

The  former  paper  described  the  employment  of  a  divided 
spherical  lens  to  bring  together  the  two  slightly  separated  spectra 
seen  in  any  ordinary  form  of  spectrophotometer.  This  divided 
lens  is  placed  at  about  twice  its  focal  length  behind  the  two  spectra 


Fig.  3. 
produced  by  the  objective  of  the  telescope,  and,  when  suitably 
adjusted,  gives  rise  to  two  spectra  in  contact  with  each  other,  as 
shown  in  fig.  1  of  the  former  paper.  It  has  been  found,  however, 
to  be  better  to  modify  the  action  of  the  divided  lens,  and  to  use 
it  as  indicated  in  fig.  3.  The  defect  of  the  former  arrangement 
can  be  seen  from  fig.  l,t  where  the  point  b  is  beneath  O,  per- 
mitting light  from  h  to  pass  straight  along  beneath  the  lens-half 
L,  to  prevent  which  an  opaque  stop  is  required  to  fill  up  the  space 
00',  the  stop  being  so  contrived  that  freedom  of  relative  motion  is 
still  preserved  to  the  two  halves  of  the  lens  L  and  L'.  In  the 
present  arrangement,  which  is  depicted  in  fig.  3,  no  such  device  is 

•  Proc.  Roy.  Soc.  Ediv.,  vol.  xxiv.  p.  496,  1908. 
t  See  t«)riner  note. 


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1903-4.]  Mr  Milne  on  a  New  Form  of  Spectrophotometer.       339 

needed,  provided  that  the  light  rays  from  any  the  same  point  of 
ab  and  c^  are  all  in  a  horizontal  plane  through  that  point,  and  this 
condition,  as  will  be  seen  later  on,  is  actually  fulfilled. 

The  edg^  a'  and  d'  of  the  two  spectra  formed  by  the  objective  of 
the  telescope  are  necessarily  somewhat  hazy  and  ill-defined,  whether 
the  gap  between  the  spectra  has  been  produced  by  the  menisci  of 
a  liquid  or  by  the  edge  of  a  solid.  To  remedy  this,  a  strip  of 
metal  ad  is  placed  so  as  to  cut  off  the  extreme  edges  of  the  two 
spectra,  and  by  this  means  the  edges  which  are  afterwards  brought 
into  contact  in  the  plane  SS'  are  beforehand  made  perfectly 
straight,  and  are  sharply  delimited.  This  strip  of  metal  or 
"  trimmer "  ad  (fig.  3)  really  consists  of  two  similar  pieces,  which 
by  means  of  a  slow  motion  screw  can  be  arranged  in  such  a  way 
that  the  compound  strip  is  slightly  wider  at  one  end  than  at  the 
other.  This  arrangement  the  author  has  found  to  be  necessary, 
as  in  his  model  instrument,  for  reasons  of  economy,  the  divided 
lens  is  a  simple  one,  and  so  the  neighbouring  edges  of  the  images 
of  the  two  spectra  formed  by  the  flivided  lens  are  not  parallel 
to  each  other.  This  difficulty  is  perfectly  overcome,  however,  by 
making  the  trimmer  slightly  wider  at  one  end  or  the  other  as 
may  be  required.  The  point  is  mentioned  because  even  with  a 
more  perfect  lens  the  device  might  be  necessary  to  obtain  the 
most  exact  results. 

It  inevitably  happens  that  the  two  beams  of  light  •  falling  on 
the  trimmer  adinfig.  3  suffer  marked  diffraction,  and  if  (say)  the 
lower  beam  be  stopped  off,  obvious  diffraction  bands  at  the  lower 
edge  of  the  remaining  spectrum  may  in  general  be  seen  on  looking 
through'  an  ordinary  telescope  eyepiece,  placed  behind  the  divided 
lens  at  a  distance  of  about  twice  the  focal  length  of  the  latter.  If, 
however,  the  eyepiece,  originally  somewhat  too  far  off  to  focus 
objects  in  the  plane  SS',  be  slowly  pushed  nearer  that  plane,  the 
diffraction  bands,  which  in  this  case  are  dark  and  are  situated 
upon  the  bright  strip,  are  observed  to  begin  closing  in  towards  the 
edge  of  the  image,  and  when  the  eyepiece  is  exactly  focussing  the 
plane  SS'  no  bands  are  to  be  seen  at  all.  On  continuing  to  move 
the  eyepiece  towards  the  plane  SS'  the  bands  reappear,  being  now 
bright  lines  situated  outside  the  bright  strip,  and  they  continue  to 
move  out  from  its  edge  with  the  motion  of  the  eyepiece.     These 


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Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh.         [i 


340 

results  show  then,  that  when  the  eyepiece  is  correctly  focnssed  no 
trouble  will  be  experience*  1  from  diffraction  effects. 

In  the  former  note  all  that  was  contemplated  was  a  device  for 
attachment  to  an  ordinary  spectrophotometer  to  briqg  the  two 
spectra  exactly  together,  that  the  judging  of  their  relative  inten- 
sities might  be  made  more  accurate.  The  author,  however,  had 
in  view  the  object  of  measuring  the  light  intensities  of  various 
liquids,  which  were  to  be  contained  in  tubes  about  a  metre  long, 
and  it  was  found  that  for  this  purpose,  in  addition  to  the  above 
device,  a  further  modification  in  the  form  of  spectrophotometer 
was  desirable.  This  new  design  of  instrument  also  presents 
advantages  for  general  spectrophotometrical  work. 

Fig.  4  is  intended  to  give  a  diagrammatic  view  of  such  an 


Fio.  4. 
[That  some  parts  may  be  more  easily  seen,  this  diagram  is  not  drawn  to  scale.] 

apparatus.  The  collimator  A  is  so  far  distant  from  the  prism  R, 
that  there  is  room  to  insert  between  the  two  the  long  tube  B 
containing  the  liquid.  The  ends  of  the  tube  are  made  of  plane 
parallel  glass,  so  as  not  to  interfere  with  the  parallelism  of  tiie  rays 
of  light  passing  through  it.  Before  the  customary  vertical  slit  of 
the  collimator,  there  is  placed  a  thin  piece  of  opaque  metal  pierced 
with  another  slit  whose  opening  is  horizontal,  so  that  the  effective 
aperture  of  the  two  is  a  very  small  rectangular  hole.  This 
arrangement  results  in  the  production  of  a  beam  of  light  from 
the  collimator  lens,  which  is  sensibly  parallel,  and,  the  tube  B 
being  only  half  filled  with  liquid,  all  the  upper  half  of  the  beam 
of  light  passes  entirely  clear  of  the  latter,  while  all  the  imder  half 
of  the  beam  passes  through  the  full  length  of  the  liquid. 

Without   this  arrangement,   and   using  the   light  as  it  comes 


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1903-4.]  Mr  Milne  on  a  New  Form  of  Spectrophotometer'^      341 

naturally  from  the  light  source  with  its  different  rays  inclined  in 
various  directions,  there  would  be  the  following  difficulty.  Some 
of  those  rays  which  are  inclined  downwards  would  enter  the  tube 
above  the  liquid,  but  before  leaving  the  tube,  they  would  pass 
into  the  liquid,  and  so  the  emergent  lower  beam  would  consist 
only  partially  of  rays  that  have  passed  through  the  whole  length 
of  the  liquid. 

At  first  sight  it  might  be  supposed  that  this  error  is  compen- 
sated by  a  similar  addition  from  the  lower  to  the  upper  beam,  but 
this  is  not  the  case,  for,  as  will  be  seen  on  reflection,  each  beam 
would  thus  gain  eqiLoL  quantities  of  light,  whereas,  did  complete 
compensation  occur,  the  gains  of  the  lower  and  of  the  upper  beams 
respectively  would  bear  a  ratio  to  one  another  which  is  equal  to 
the  fraction  of  the  total  light,  incident  upon  it,  which  is  trans- 
mitted by  the  absorbing  liquid. 

In  reality  too  the  number  of  rays  passing  from  the  lower  to  the 
upper  beam  within  the  absorption  vessel  is  not  equal  to  the 
number  passing  from  the  upper  to  the  lower,  because  a  large  pro- 
portion of  the  former  rays  will  be  totally  reflected  down  again  at 
the  surface  of  the  liquid;  and  consideration  will  show  that  this 
fact  will  make  the  error  spoken  of  above  still  greater. 

There  is  also  the  further  point  that  with  non-parallel  light  and 
a  long  absorption  tube  the  number  of  rays  that  pass  out  through 
the  sides  of  the  tube  will  be  different  for  the  upper  and  for  the 
lower  part  of  the  tube,  owing  to  the  presence  of  the  liquid  in  the 
latter. 

With  a  non-parallel  beam  not  only  do  the  two  above  noted 
difficulties  arise,  but  there  comes  in  the  additional  error  that  the 
source  of  light  is  in  effect  brought  some  distance  nearer  in  the 
case  of  the  beam  that  passes  through  the  liquid,  and  hence  the 
light  intensity  of  that  beam  is  increased,  that  of  the  other  beam 
being  left  unchanged.* 

Even  were  the  beam  of  light  employed  to  be  the  cone  of  rays 
proceeding  from  a  very  small  hole  in  an  opaque  screen  placed 
immediately  in  front  of  the  light  source  and  at  the  level  of  the 

*In  this  connection  see  a  paper  entitled  "On  the  Absorption  Spectra  of 
some  Ck)ppeT  Salts  in  Aqneous  Solution,"  by  Thomas  Ewan,  6. So.,  Ph.D., 
Pm.  Mag,  (5),  No.  208,  p.  881,  April  1892. 


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342  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh.  [sess. 

liquid  in  the  tube,  of  these  three  errors  just  noted  only  the  first 
would  be  done  away  with,  besides  which  such  a  plan  would  give 
less  light  intensity  than  the  arrangement  of  the  collimator  described 
above. 

In  a  spectrophotometer  as  ordinarily  made  there  is  no  room 
between  the  collimator  and  the  prism  for  an  absorption  vessel, 
and  to  comply  with  the  above  parallel  light  condition  it  becomes 
necessary  to  take  off  the  collimator  and  to  mount  it  by  itself  in 
front  of  the  spectrophotometer  at  such  a  distance  as  permits  of 
inserting  the  absorption  vessel  between  the  two. 

In  the  ordinary  type  of  spectrophotometer  there  are  two  difficulties 
that  would  arise  were  parallel  light  to  be  used.  It  will  be 
seen  that  as  all  the  rays  of  both  the  beams  of  light  which  emerge 
from  the  absorption  vessel  are  parallel  to  the  general  optic  axis  of 
the  instrument,  these  two  beams  of  light,  after  duly  passing 
through  the  prism  and  the  object  glass  of  the  telescope,  will  give 
rise  to  one  and  the  same  spectrum;  and  that  the  width  of  this 
spectrum  will  be  very  small. 

Taking  the  latter  difficulty  first,  the  width  of  the  spectrum 
produced  by  any  spectroscope  must  be  equal  to  the  length  of  the 
collimator  slit  midtiplied  by  the  focal  length  of  the  telescope 
objective  and  divided  by  the  focal  length  of  the  collimator  lens. 
Now  in  the  above  arrangement  the  ** length"  of  the  small  hole 
which  acts  as  a  collimator  slit  may  be  about  j^^th  of  an  inch,  so 
that  the  spectrum  formed  by  the  two  beams  of  light  will  have  a 
quite  insufficient  width  for  our  purpose.  Besides,  we  require 
each  beam  to  give  rise  to  a  separate  spectrum,  and  we  must  not 
have  the  two  spectra  formed  in  the  same  position  one  upon  the 
other.  Both  difficulties,  however,  are  readily  solved  by  using  as 
the  telescope  objective  a  cylindrical  lens  (C,  fig.  4)  whose  axis  of 
figure  is  placed  vertically  :  the  focal  length  of  the  lens  being 
identical  with  that  of  the  spherical  lens  whose  place  it  has  taken. 
In  this  way,  while  using  a  strictly  parallel  beam  of  light  to  paas 
into  the  absorbing  vessel,  we  obtain  two  separate  spectra  placed 
one  above  the  other,  and  formed  respectively  by  the  "  comparison  " 
and  by  the  *'  absorbed ''  beams  of  light ;  and  the  widths  of  these 
spectra  are  amply  sufficient,  for  they  are  respectively  equal  to 
the  heights   of   the   cross   sections  of  each  beam  of  light.     See 


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1903-4.]  Mr  Milne  on  a  New  Form  of  Spectrophotovieter.      343 

p  and  g,  fig.  4,  which  represent  the  intersections  by  the 
plane  of  the  paper  of  the  two  spectra  formed  by  the  cylindrical 
lens  C. 

In  the  case  of  a  spectrophotometer  where  the  light  intensities 
are  regulated  and  measured  by  means  of  a  Vieroidt  double  slit  on 
the  collimator,  the  latter  cannot  be  removed  and  placed  in  front  of 
the  absorption  vessel  without  the  loss  of  this  means  of  controlling 
the  light  intensity.  Of  course  the  collimator  might  be  left  on  the 
spectrophotometer  and  another  collimator  might  be  arranged  in 
front  of  the  absorption  vessel,  the  two  beams  of  light  from  the 
latter  being  directed  upon  the  two  Vieroidt  slits  respectively. 
With  such  an  arrangement,  however,  the  intensity  would  be 
reduced  by  the  narrow  openings  of  the  Vieroidt  slits,  as  well  as 
by  the  small  rectangular  opening  of  the  first  collimator.  The 
writer  tried  a  modification  of  the  above  plan  designed  to  obviate 
this  loss,  in  which  the  second  collimator  being  provided  with 
Vieroidt  slits,  the  latter  were  made  to  open  at  the  maximum  to  a 
width  equal  to  that  of  the  two  beams  of  light,  while  the  lens  of 
this  collimator  was  discarded.  Those  changes  are  legitimate 
because  the  light  rays  have  already  been  made  parallel  by  the  first 
collimator,  and  all  that  we  wish  to  retain  of  the  Vieroidt  double 
sUt  collimator  is  its  power  to  regulate  the  intensities  of  the  two 
beams.  The  difficulty  with  this  plan  is  that  the  beam  of  light 
produced  by  the  first  collimator  is  apt  not  to  have  the  same 
intensity  at  every  point  across  a  normal  section,  and  if,  for  example, 
the  jaws  of  one  of  the  slits  be  closed  together  till  only  the  half  of 
that  beam  is  permitted  to  pass  through,  we  shall  not  in  general 
have  reduced  the  total  light  intensity  of  that  beam  by  one  half. 
The  uniformity  of  the  distribution  of  intensity  in  the  cross 
section  of  the  beam  of  light  after  leaving  the  first  coUimator 
depends  to  a  lai^e  extent  on  what  source  of  light  is  employed ; 
lime  light,  owing  to  the  small  area  of  its  light  source,  being 
markedly  inferior  for  such  a  purpose  to  a  flat  acetylene  flame. 
Even  with  the  latter,  however,  a  doubt  may  exist  as  to  the  perfect 
equality  of  the  intensity  throughout  the  cross  section  of  the  beam, 
and  80  this  modification  of  the  Vieroidt  double  slit  was  abandoned 
and  another  device  for  intensity  regulation  was  substituted  which 
will  be  discussed  later. 


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344  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edivhmgh,         [obs. 

The  plane  P  and  Q  (fig.  4)  in  which  the  two  spectra  p  and  q 
are  formed,  is  occupied  by  a  screen  whose  function  is  to  limit 
the  field  of  view  of  the  eyepiece  to  two  narrow  strips  taken  one 
from  each  spectrum  for  the  purpose  of  having  their  intensities 
compared.  This  screen  is  shown  diagrammatically  in  fig.  7.  By 
means  of  the  sliding  piece  A,  the  colour  of  the  strip  taken  from 
the  upper  si»ectrum  can  be  altered  at  pleasure,  while  by  means  of 
the  second  sliding  piece  a,  mounted  on  the  first,  the  width  of  the 
strip  can  be  altered.  The  sliding  pieces  B  and  h  perform  similar 
offices  for  the  lower  spectrum.  Through  the  opening  of  the  slides 
the  trimmer  T  may  be  seen.  The  latter  is  fixed  at  the  side  of  the 
screen  adjacent  to  the  divided  lens,  and  fulfils  a  function  that  has 
already  been  explained. 

After  the  screen  there  follows  at  a  distance  of  about  twice  *  its 


Fio.  5. 

[That  some  of  the  parts  may  be  more  easily  seen,  this  diagram  is  not  drawn  to 

scale,  nor  does  C  show  the  true  cross  section  of  the  lens  at  that  place.  ] 

focal  length  the  divided  spherical  lens  D  (fig.  4),  and,  as  shown 
above,  the  resulting  images  in  the  plane  FF  (which  is  conjugate  to 
the  screen  in  the  plane  FQ)  of  the  strips  of  the  two  spectra  p  and 
q  can  be  arranged  by  adjusting  the  lens-halves  so  that  their  edges 
are  in  complete  contact. 

It  may  be  mentioned  here  that  there  is  an  alternative  arrange- 
ment of  the  parts  just  described  which  has  the  merit  of  shortening 
the  telescope  tube.  The  latter  point  is  important,  because  if  an 
ordinary  spectroscope  prism  be  employed,  all  the  parts  of  the 

*  It  will  be  recollected  that  the  mmimnm  distance  between  an  object  and 
the  image  of  it  formed  by  a  convergent  lens  is  equal  to  four  times  the  focal 
length  of  the  lens  ;  the  divided  lens  has  been  placed  at  a  distance  of  twice  its 
fooal  length  from  the  two  spectra  p  and  q  (fig.  4),  so  that  the  telescope  tube 
may  be  as  short  as  possible. 


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1903-4.]  Mr  Milne  on  a  New  Form  of  JSpectrophotoifteter,       345 

optical  train  that  follow  mnst  be  capable  of  rotation  about  a 
vertical  axis  through  the  prism  to  an  extent  sufficient  to  cause 
all  the  various  colours  of  the  spectrum  in  their  turn  to  fall  upon 
the  eyepiece  and  to  be  seen  by  the  eye  of  the  observer.  In  the 
usual  form  of  spectrophotometer  this  is  achieved  by  supporting 
the  telescope  only  at  its  objective  end,  which  is  pivoted  so  as  to 
have  the  required  rotatory  motion.  Now  in  this  instrument  the 
telescope  tube  must  have  a  length  equal  to  the  focal  length  of  the 
cylindrical  telescope  objective,  plus  a  further  length,  equal  to  four 
times  the  focal  length  of  the  divided  lens.  Such  a  length  of  tube 
makes  it  difficult  to  secure  the  necessary  rigidity  without  resorting 
to  a  cumbrous  form  of  mounting. 

The  alternative  form  of  apparatus  just  mentioned,  which  is 
shown  diagrammatically  in  fig.  5,  is  provided  with  a  single  lens, 
C  and  D,  which  takes  the  place  of  the  two  lenses  C  and  D 
of  fig.  4,  with  the  result  that  the  telescope  tube  is  shortened 
by  a  length  equal  to  the  distance  between  the  planes  PQ  and  FF'. 
In  order  to  find  the  specification  of  the  lens  required  in  this  case 
two  points  must  be  borne  in  mind.  In  the  first  place  the  lens, 
when  placed  behind  the  prism  R  (fig.  4),  must  give  rise  to  two 
pure  spectra  formed  from  the  two  beams  of  light  respectively. 
Now  a  cylindrical  lens  with  its  axis  of  figure  upright  will  fulfil 
the  above  condition.  Its  focal  length  may  equal  the  distance 
from  C  to  the  line  PQ,  so  that  the  spectra  will  be  formed  in  a  plane 
normal  to  the  paper  through  the  latter  line.  In  the  second  place, 
as  already  explained,  to  avoid  diffraction  eflfects  the  trimmer  must 
be  situated  in  a  plane  conjugate  to  that  in  which  the  spectra  are 
formed.  To  fulfil  this  condition  along  with  the  other  the  lens, 
having  its  front  face  ground  to  the  cylindrical  curvature  deter- 
mined above,  must  have  its  back  face  ground  as  a  cylindrical 
lens  whose  axis  of  figure  is  horizontal.  The  exact  focal  length 
of  the  curvature  on  the  back  face  of  the  lens  we  shall  discuss 
later.  At  present  it  will  merely  be  specified  that  it  is  to  be  less 
than  the  focal  length  of  the  curvature  formed  on  the  front  face. 
This  lens  will  bring  the  beam  of  parallel  light  ABCD  (fig.  6a)  to 
a  line  focus  EF,  where  £F  is  situated  as  before  at  a  distance  from 
the  lens  equal  to  the  distance  from  C  to  the  line  PQ  (fig.  4). 
Before    reaching    £F,  however,   the    beam    is  first  brought   to 


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346  Proceedings  of  Hoyal  Society  of  Edinburgh.  [i 

another  line  focus  OH,  the  distance  from  OH  to  the  lens  being 
equal  to  the  focal  length  of  the  curvature  on  the  back  face  of  the 
lens.  Now  this  lens,  if  placed  behind  the  prism  R  in  fig.  4,  will 
form  two  pure  spectra  in  the  plane  normal  to  the  paper  through 
the  line  PQ.  Further,  if  in  that  figure  the  strip  of  metal  called 
the  trimmer  be  placed  immediately  behind  the  lens  of  the 
collimator,  we  can  arrauge,  by  properly  choosing  the  radius  of 
curvature  of  the  back  face  of  the  lens,  that  the  plane  in  which 
the  trimmer  is  placed  shall  be  conjugate  to  the  plane  in  which 
the  spectra  are  produced ;  and  this  fulfils  our  second  condition. 

The  two  spectra  so  formed  from  the   two  beams   respectively 
will  exhibit  a  dark  gap  between  them,  and  therefore,  as  before, 


Fio.  6a. 

the  lens  is  to  be  cut  through  the  centre  in  a  horizontal  plane, 
and  then  on  separating  the  lens-halves  to  the  required  extent  the 
two  spectra  can  be  moved  towards  each  other  till  their  edges  come 
into  perfect  contact.  In  fig.  6jS,  there  are  shown  two  beams  of 
homogeneous  light,  and  the  resulting  lines  EM,  MF  (which  are 
two  elements  of  the  two  spectra  that  would  be  formed  in  the 
general  case)  are  drawn  as  they  would  be  if  brought  with  their 
ends  just  to  touch  each  other  by  an  appropriate  separation  of  the 
lens-halves  L  and  L'. 

With  a  simple  lens,  on  bringing  the  edges  of  the  two  spectra 
near  each  other,  it  can  be  seen  that  they  are  not  parallel  This 
is  due  to  a  mixture  of  the  errors  of  distortion  and  of  chromatic 
aberration  of  the  lens.  To  remedy  this  it  would  be  of  no 
avail  to  make  the  trimmer  wider  at  one  end,  as  explained  on 
page  339  ;  for  reflection  will  show  that  that  would  merely  reduce 
the  intensity  of  the  light  which  forms  the  adjacent  edges  of  the 


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1903-4.]  Mr  Milne  on  a  New  Forvi  of  Spectrophotometer.      347 

two  spectra,  but  would  not  alter  the  positions  of  those  edges. 
Elach  spectrum,  however,  may  be  tilted  to  the  required  amount 
by  slightly  rotating  the  corresponding  lens-half  about  the  general 
optical  axis  of  the  instrument.  In  order  to  preserve  symmetry 
the  respective  rotations  in  opposite  directions  of  the  lens-halves 
should  be  to  equal  amounts.  Even  with  so-called  achromatic 
lenses  this  device  will  probably  be  found  necessary. 

The  limitation  of  the  field  of  view  seen  by  the  eye  to  a  similar 
narrow  strip  from  each  spectrum  is  obtained  in  this  form  of  the 
instrument  by  an  appropriate  screen  in  the  eyepiece. 


Fio.  6/8. 

Finally,  it  may  be  noted  that  it  is  desirable,  in  the  interests  of 
good  definition,  to  use  spherical  lenses  in  preference  to  cylindrical, 
and  to  avoid  curvatures  of  too  small  radius.  Accordingly,  instead 
of  the  theoretical  lens  discussed  above,  it  is  better  to  substitute 
one  having  the  curvature  on  one  of  its  faces  spherical,  and  having 
the  other  face  a  convergent  cylindrical  lens  whose  axis  of  figure 
is  horizontal.  The  proof  that  such  a  lens  can  be  equivalent  to 
the  former  is  part  of  the  general  theory  of  optics,  and  neither  this 
proof  nor  any  details  as  to  the  necessary  focal  lengths  of  the 
curvatures,  etc.,  need  be  entered  upon  here. 

The  author's  experiments  with  this  form  of  the  instrument  have 
not  been  numerous,  because  he  found  that  the  cheap  divided  lens 
used  by  him  in  the  model  gave  less  satisfactory  definition  than  the 
spherical  divided  lens  employed  in  the  model  of  the  instrument 
first  described.  He  believes,  however,  that  with  a  well-made  lens 
this  second  arrangement  of  instrument  might  perhaps  be  better 
than  the  other. 


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348  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh.  [i 

It  may,  however,  be  noted  that  the  chief  objection  to  a  some- 
what long  telescope  tube  can  be  done  away  with  by  the  use  in  the 
spectrophotometer  of  a  "constant  deviation  prism,"*  a  construc- 
tion of  prism  which  permits  the  telescope  of  the  instrument  to  be 
permanently  fixed,  while  the  prism  alone  rotates  to  bring  the 
different  parts  of  the  spectrum  to  the  observer's  eye.  In  the  case 
of  a  spectrophotometer  furnished  with  such  a  prism  the  rigid 
mounting  of  even  an  unusually  long  telescope  tube  of  course 
presents  no  difficulty. 

Either  of  the  above  described  arrangements  of  spectrophotometer 
having  been  adopted,  it  might  be  supposed  that  the  similar  strips 
of  the  two  adjacent  spectra  could  be  satisfactorily  observed  on 
looking  at  them  through   any  ordinary  eyepiece.     What  is  thus 


Fio.  7. 

seen,  however,  is  unsatisfactory.     The  two  luminous  strips  are  not 

like  natural  objects,  which  give  out  rays  of  light  in  all  directions 

from  every  point,  but  on  the  contrary  the  edge  of  each  of  the 

strips  brought  into  contact  gives  out  rays  of  light  only  in  a  single 

plane,  as  indicated  in  fig.  8.     From  any  point  a  of  the  upper  edge 

of  the  lower  image  rays  proceed  only  in  the  plane  normal  to  the 

paper  which  passes  through  the  line  aB,  and  similarly  from  any 

point  b  of  the  lower  edge  of  the  upper  image  the  rays  proceed  only 

in  the  plane  normal  to  the  paper  which  passes  through  the  line  bA. 

Accordingly,  the  coincident  edges  of  the  two  images  are  seen  by 

means  of  two  sets  of  rays  which  respectively  fall  on  the  optical 

system  of  the  eye  at  places  some  distance  apart.     Now  through 

the  effects  of  the  eye's  spherical   aberration,  and   probably  also 

because  of  general  irregularities  in  the  refractive  parts  of  the  eye, 

the  two  sets  of  rays  from  the  coincident  edges  of  the  strips  will 

not  be  brought  to  the  same  line  on  the  retina.     Any  slight  move- 

*  As  employed,  for  example,  by  Messrs  Hilger,  Ltd.,  on  oertun  of  their 
speotrometers. 


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1908-4.]  Mr  Milne  on  a  New  Form  of  Spectrophotometer,      349 

ment  of  the  head  will  alter  the  paths  of  the  two  sets  of  rays 
through  the  optical  system  of  the  eye,  and  the  effect  of  such  a 
moYement  will  be  to  cause  an  apparent  relative  motion,  as  seen  by 
the  observer  of  the  really  coincident  edges  of  the  two  spectra. 
As  a  matter  of  fact  the  edges  of  the  two  spectra  are  seen  by  an 
observer  to  be  slightly  overlapping  each  other  at  one  moment, 
while  a  moment  later  a  slight  gap  will  have  made  its  appearance 
between  them.  This,  no  doubt,  is  due  to  movements  of  the  head 
or  eye. 

The  author  at  first  sought  to  remedy  this  defect  by  giving  to  the 
divided  lens  a  focal  length  of  about  half  a  metre,  which  caused  a 
reduction  of  the  angle  AaB  of  fig.  8,  and  a  consequent  reduction 
in    the  distance  between  the   two  sets  of    rays  aB,  bA  when 


Fig.  8. 

entering  the  eye.  A  specially  short  eyepiece  also  was  used,  so 
that  the  eye  of  the  observer  might  come  as  near  the  diverging 
point  a  as  possible.  These  alterations,  while  undoubtedly  effecting 
much  improvement,  were  after  all  only  palliative  in  their  effect, 
and  the  comparatively  great  focal  length  of  the  divided  lens 
necessitated  a  somewhat  unwieldy  length  of  telescope  tube,  a  point 
that  has  already  been  dwelt  upon. 

After  various  other  methods  had  been  considered  without 
success  the  following  means  of  overcoming  the  difficulty  was 
finally  discovered.  Advantage  was  taken  of  the  well-known  fact 
that  if  a  ray  of  light  fall  normally  upon  one  of  the  faces  of  a 
Wollaston  double  image  prism  there  proceeds  from  the  other  face 
two  divergent  rays  which  are  polarised  in  planes  at  right  angles  to 
each  other.  If  now — reversely — there  fall  on  one  of  the  faces  of 
the  Wollaston  prism  two  converging  rays  of  light  inclined  at  the 
proper  angle,  these  two  rays  will  emerge  from  the  opposite  face  of 
the  prism  in  one  and  the  same  straight  line  normally  to  the  face. 
It  is   true,   of  course,    that   unless   the   entering   rays   be   each 


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350  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh.         [siss. 

polarised,  and  polarised  in  the  proper  planes  respectively,  then  in 
addition  to  the  two  coincident  exit  rays  there  will  be  two  other 
non-coincident  exit  rays,  making  four  exit  rays  in  all,  but  the 
divergent  rays  have  no  connection  with  our  present  purpose,  and 
may  be  disregarded,  as  will  be  shown  later.  Suppose  now  that 
a  suitable  Wollaston  prism  be  placed  in  the  plane  FF',  fig.  4, 
then  all  the  rays  which  go  to  form  the  edges  of  the  two  spectra  in 
the  plane  FF*  (two  of  which  rays  are  indicated  by  C6  and  Do, 
fig.  8)  proceed,  after  passing  through  the  Wollaston  prism,  in  one 
and  the  same  horizontal  plane  through  the  eyepiece  E.  In  this 
way  all  the  rays  from  any  point  conmion  to  the  coincident  edges 
of  the  two  spectra  fall  on  the  cornea  of  the  observer's  eye  in  one 


Fig.  9. 

and  the  same  straight  line,  so  that  the  optical  defects  of  the  eye 
spoken  of  before  do  not  cause  any  difficulties. 

As  mentioned  above,  each  ray  incident  on  the  Wollaston  prism 
gives  rise  to  two  emergent  rays.  Considering  then,  for  example, 
the  point  b  (fig.  8),  we  see  that  the  ray  proceeding  from  it  in  the 
plane  of  the  paper  will,  after  passing  through  the  prism,  give  rise 
to  two  emergent  rays  SH  and  KL  (fig.  9).  The  ray  KL  will  not 
be  seen  at  all  by  the  observer  unless  the  angle  COD  be  small  and 
the  power  of  the  eyepiece  low.  In  the  model  that  the  author  has 
had  constructed  the  distance  CO  is  about  6*5  inches  and  CD  is 
equal  to  -6  inch,  while  the  eyepiece  is  one  of  moderate  power,  and 
such  rays  as  KL  can  only  be  seen  by  moving  the  eyepiece  either 
up  or  down  until  the  junction  of  the  two  bright  strips  has  passed 
out  of  the  field  of  view,  so  that  only  one  of  the  two  bright  strips 


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1903-4.]  Mr  Milne  on  a  New  Form  of  Spectrophotometer,       351 

can  be  seen  by  the  observer.  It  will  then  be  noticed  that  this 
strip  has  superimposed  upon  it  another  bright  strip  (G  or  D,  fig.  10), 
at  the  end  which  has  just  been  brought,  into  view  by  this  move- 
ment of  the  eyepiece.  Hence  it  appears  that  really  there  are  in 
all  four  bright  strips,  disposed  as  shown  in  fig.  10,  the  two 
with  which  we  are  concerned  being  the  middle  pair  with  their 
edges  in  contact  along  the  line  AB.  Now  the  two  additional 
bright  strips  G  and  D  are  formed  by  KL  and  the  other  rays 
whose  refraction  is  analogous,  and  it  will  be  seen  that  the  state- 
ment made  above — that  the  rays  so  refracted  may  for  our  purpose 
be  ignored — is  justified. 

But  there  is  a  further  advantage  to  be  gained  by  such  a  use  of 
a  Wollaston  prism.  It  will  be  remembered  (see  p.  343)  that  the 
use  of  a  Yieroidt  double  slit  in  connection  with  this  instrument 


Fio.  10. — Under  normal  oonditions  only  the  middle  portion  of  the  above  can 
be  seen  through  the  eyepiece,  C  and  D  lying  outside  the  field  of  view. 

to  regidate  and  measure  the  light  intensities  of  the  two  beams  was 
found  to  be  unsatisfactory  owing  to  the  great  loss  of  light  which  it 
entailed,  while  a  modified  arrangement  of  the  same  kind  had 
also  to  be  discarded.  Now,  with  the  arrangement  of  apparatus 
described  above,  by  the  mere  addition  of  a  Nicol  prism  to  the 
eyepiece  there  is  provided  the  necessary  appliance  for  regulating 
the  intensities  of  the  two  strips  of  light  seen  by  ^^he  observer  until 
a  perfect  match  is  attained.  The  rays  r  and  »  (fig.  4),  after  trans- 
mission through  the  Wollaston  prism,  pass  out  along  the  same 
straight  line  /,  but  remain  distinct  in  this,  that  they  are  polarised 
in  planes  at  right  angles  to  each  other.  Accordingly,  because  of 
the  Nicol  in  the  eyepiece,  rotation  of  the  latter  about  its  axis 
causes  every  possible  variation  from  zero  to  infinity  of  the  ratio  of 
the  intensities  of  the  two  strips  of  light  seen  by  the  observer.  By 
means   of  a  circular  vernier  or  other  device  the  position  of  the 


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352  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh.  [sias. 

eyepiece  as  regards  its  rotation  is  ascertained  after  each  setting  to 
equal  intensity  of  the  two  bright  strips.  The  ratio  of  the  bright- 
ness of  the  two  strips  is  equal  to  the  square  of  the  tangent  of 
the  angle  of  displacement  of  the  eyepiece,  if  the  zero  of  the 
latter  be  that  position  in  which  the  light  of  the  under  strip 
is  completely  extinguished.  As  the  under  strip  is  that  due  to 
the  comparison  beam,  that  is,  to  the  beam  that  does  not  pass 
through  the  absorbing  liquid,  the  tangent  of  the  displacement 
angle  is  equal  to  the  fraction  of  the  incident  light  transmitted 
by  the  absorbing  substance. 

It  is  to  be  noted  that,  in  common  with  other  polarising  spectro- 
photometers, this  instrument  suffers  from  the  defect  that  the  light 
in  passing  through  the  main  prism  is  partially  polarised  in  a 
vertical  plane,  for  which  reason,  when  there  is  no  absorbing  sub- 
stance in  the  path  of  either  beam,  and  when  accordingly  the 
analysing  Nicol  ought  to  give  equality  of  illumination  when  set 
at  an  angle  of  45**,  it  is  found  that  the  Xicol  has  to  be  turned 
round  slightly  from  that  position  before  the  intensities  of  the  two 
beams  will  exactly  balance.  The  amount  of  this  error,  which 
depends  on  the  refractive  index  of  the  glass  of  the  prism,  etc., 
can  be  calculated  by  Fresners  formulsB,  and  in  a  case  computed 
by  the  author  it  is  about  4**  40'.  As,  however,  it  is  hoped  later  on 
to  publish  some  experiments  on  this  subject,  the  mathematical 
discussion  need  not  be  entered  into  here.  It  only  remains  to  be 
said,  that  the  observations  made  with  such  instruments  are  to  be 
reduced  by  assuming  that  a  certain  (constant)  absorbing  body  has 
been  permanently  placed  in  the  path  of  one  of  the  beams. 

It  should  be  noted  that  the  two  beams  of  light  are  in  some 
ways  asymmetric  as  they  pass  through  the  Wollaston  prism,  and 
hence  it  is  possible  that  different  fractions  of  the  light  may  be 
transmitted  in  each  case.  As  regards  absorption  the  existence  of 
such  a  crystal  as  tourmaline  shows  that  this  may  be  very  different 
in  the  case  of  the  ordinary  and  of  the  extraordinary  rays.  With 
the  crystal  mentioned  the  ordinary  ray  is  practically  non-existent 
after  transmission  through  one  or  two  millimetres  of  the  substance, 
while  the  extraordinary  ray  in  the  same  circumstances  is  only 
slightly  absorbed.  In  the  case  of  this  instrument,  however,  the 
Wollaston  prism  is  of  quartz,  which  is  a  substance  where  no  such 


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1903-4.]  Mr  Milne  on  a  New  Form  of  Spectrophotometer,      353 

marked  disparity  in  the  absorption  coefficients  for  the  ordinary 
and  the  extraordinary  rays  exists ;  and,  further,  any  difference  in 
the  intensity  of  the  transmitted  beams  after  passing  through  the 
WoUaston  prism  could,  in  any  case,  only  be  a  small  one,  because 
the  rays  of  each  beam  are  transmitted  for  the  length  of  approxi- 
mately half  their  path  through  the  crystal  as  ordinary  (extra- 
ordinary) rays,  and  for  the  remaining  half  as  extraordinary 
(ordinary)  rays. 

Another  possible  source  of  asymmetric  error  lies  in  the  fact 
that  the  rays  from  any,  the  same  point  of  the  image  p  (fig.  4)  may, 
after  passing  through  the  Wollaston  prism,  diverge  to  a  different 
extent  from  the  rays  from  the  corresponding  point  in  the  other 
image  q,  after  they  have  passed  through  the  Wollaston  prism. 
Were  this  the  case,  and  were  the  difference  sufficiently  marked, 
the  eye  would  see  the  strip  due  to  the  less  divergent  beam  to 
sensibly  greater  advantage  as  regards  intensity  than  the  strip  due 
to  the  other  beam.  And  indeed  the  two  images  themselves, 
because  they  are  formed  inside  the  Wollaston  prism,  may  not 
correspond  in  brightness  to  the  original  beams,  for  the  rays  of  the 
two  beams  respectively  may  be  converged  to  a  different  extent  on 
entering  the  prism. 

Any  such  errors,  however,  did  they  exist  could  be  at  least  very 
approximately  got  rid  of  as  follows.  The  light  absorption  of  any 
liquid  for  any  particular  wave  length  would  be  twice  measured, 
once  with  the  Wollaston  prism  emitting  the  upper  beam  as  the 
ordinary  ray,  and  then  with  the  Wollaston  prism  turned  upside 
down  and  emitting  the  same  beam  as  the  extraordinary  ray.  The 
mean  of  these  two  measurements  would  give  the  true  absorption 
very  nearly. 

The  model  instrument  which  has  been  made,  while  it  shows 
the  general  soundness  of  the  principles  involved,  is  not  capable  of 
measurements  of  the  accuracy  required  to  definitely  settle  this 
question.  All  that  can  be  said  in  the  circumstances  is  that  no 
such  discrepancy  can  be  seen  with  the  present  apparatus. 

In  the  note  of  last  year  the  use  of  the  instrument  for  Murphy's 
method  of  mapping  the  visual  intensity  of  a  spectrum  was  pointed 
out,  and  it  only  needs  to  be  said  that  the  necessary  adjustments 
of  the  apparatus  are  those  described  in  that  communication  in  the 

PROC.  ROY.  SOC.  BDIN. — VOL.  XXV.  23 


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354         Proceedings  of  Roycd  Society  of  Edinburgh,  [sm. 

case  of  the  form  of  this  instrument  which  is  depicted  in  fig.  5. 
In  the  case  of  the  form  which  is  depicted  in  fig.  4  the  sliding 
pieces  A  and  B  of  the  screen  (fig.  7)  are  first  set  respectively  to 
the  two  neighhouring  strips  of  the  spectrum  whose  intensity  it  is 
desired  to  compare,  and  then  the  lens-halves  L  and  L'  (fig.  3)  are 
moved  sideways  normal  to  the  plane  of  the  paper  to  bring  the  two 
images  of  these  strips  one  above  the  other  in  the  plane  SS'.  The 
perfect  contact  of  the  edges  is  secured  by  moving  the  lens-halves 
vertically  either  nearer  together  or  further  apart,  as  has  already 
been  explained. 


{Isstud  seiarately  November  5,  1904.) 


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i90d-4.]    Mr  J.  B.  Milne  on  a  New  Farm  of  Juxtapositor.  356 


A  New  Form  of  Juxtapositor  to  bring  into  Accurate 
Contact  the  Bdges  of  the  two  Beams  of  Light  used 
in  Spectrophotometry,  with  an  application  to 
Polarimetry.  By  J.  R.  Milne,  B.Sc,  Carnegie  Scholar 
in  Natural  Philosophy. 

(Read  June  20,  1904.    MS.  received  June  23,  1904.) 

In  the  ordinary  spectrophotometer  and  in  Laurent's  "half- 
shade"  polarimeter,  two  neighhouring  patches  of  light  of  the 
tame  colour  but  of  different  intensities  are  presented  to  the  eye 
of  the  observer,,  who  by  an  appropriate  means  reduces  the 
intensity  of  the  brighter  until  in  his  judgment  it  is  brought  down 
to  the  same  intensity  as  the  other.  The  accuracy  of  such  a 
measurement  must  depend  on  two  factors.  The  first  factor  is  the 
accuracy  with  which  the  observer's  eye  can  judge  of  the  equality 
of  the  two  patches  of  light,  and  the  second  factor  is  the  accuracy 
with  which  the  instrumental  reading  indicates  the  intensity  of 
the  comparison  beam,  i.e.,  of  the  beam  whose  brightness  is  reduced 
till  it  becomes  equal  to  that  of  the  other.  Now  it  is  found 
that  in  ordinary  cases  the  error  of  the  eye's  judgment  in  such 
measurements  amounts  to  about  4%  or  5%,  while  the  measurement 
of  the  instrumental  regulation  of  the  light  can  be  made  much 
more  accurately.  Accordingly,  the  error  in  the  measurements 
made  with  a  spectrophotometer  cannot  be  much  less  than  4%  or 
5%  unless  some  special  means  be  employed  for  improving  the  eye's 
power  of  judgment  in  such  a  case,  and  the  mere  provision  of  a 
finer  instrumental  graduation  will  not  meet  the  difficulty.  Con- 
siderable assistance  would  be  rendered  to  the  eye  were  the  two 
patches  of  light,  whose  equality  the  eye  is  to  judge,  brought  with 
their  edges  accurately  to  touch  each  other  so  that  no  hiatus  existed 
between  them.  As  a  rule  however  such  a  hiatus  does  exist,  for 
should  the  two  lights  be'  from  different  sources,  the  edge  of  the 
mirror  or  other  appliance  which  directs  the  comparison  beam  into 


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356  Proceedings  of  Roycd  Society  of  Edinbv/rgh.         [sbss. 

the  instrument  invariably  shows  as  a  more  or  less  badly  defined 
dark  space  between  the  two  spectra ;  while  in  those  cases  where 
only  one  light  source  is  employed,  one  part  of  the  beam  being 
absorbed  by  any  given  substance  and  the  other  part  used  for 
comparison,  the  edge  of  the  substance,  if  the  latter  be  a  solid,  or 
the  meniscus,  if  it  be  a  liquid,  brings  about  the  same  result.  The 
object  of  the  present  paper  is  to  describe  an  appliance  by  which 
this  difl&culty  may  be  overcome. 

The  instrument  (see  fig.    1)   is  constructed  of  two  separate 
pieces  of  glass  which   are   cut  from   the  same  block  to  ensure 


Fiol. 
The  two  glass  blocks  cemented  The  two  glass  blocks  shown 

together.  apart  as  they  are  before 

being  oemented. 

similarity  of  optical  properties.  These  pieces  having  been  worked 
truly  plane  on  the  faces  which  transmit  the  light,  are  silvered 
over  the  portions  shaded  in  the  figure,  and  are  then  cemented 
together  along  their  common  interface  PQRS.  The  effect  of  the 
cement,  whose  refractive  index  is  practically  the  same  as  that  of 
the  glass,  is  to  make  the  joint  nearly  optically  homogeneous  with 
the  glass  blocks  on  each  side.  As  will  be  seen  from  the  diagrams, 
in  every  case  the  various  faces  of  the  blocks  are  either  perpen- 
dicular, or  are  inclined  at  an  angle  of  45*  to  each  other. 

The  glass  block  thus  built  up  is  encased  in  a  metal  shell,  with 


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1903-4.]    Mr  J.  K.  Milne  on  a  New  Form  of  JuxiaposUor.  357 

appropriate  openings  for  the  entrance  and  exit  of  the  light.  The 
best  place  for  the  attachment  of  the  apparatus  to  the  spectro- 
photometer will,  of  course,  vary  to  some  extent  with  the  pattern 
of  the  instrtiment — in  the  author's  case  it  is  mounted  immediately 
in  front  of  the  collimator  slit.  When  the  juxtapositor  is  so 
situated  with  regard  to  the  spectrophotometer,  the  upper  or  "  com- 
parison "  beam  of  light  enters  face  AB  (fig.  2a)  and  meets  the 
interface  CD  at  an  angle  of  45**,  and  the  part  of  it  falling  on  the 
area  OC  is  reflected  upwards  by  the  silvering.  The  other  part, 
which  falls  on  the  unsilvered  surface  OD,  passes  straight  on 
and  out  through  the  face  CF,  and  is  not  used.     In  the  same 


/•  ,/ 


Fio.  2 


way  the  lower  or  "  absorbed "  beam  enters  face  DE,  and  is 
reflected  upwards  by  the  silvering  on  the  face  EF,  and  the 
part  of  it  incident  on  the  lower  half  OD  of  the  interface 
DC  continues  on  its  vertical  course  upwards.  The  other  part, 
which  falls  on  the  silvered  surface  OC,  is  reflected  out  through 
the  face  CF,  and  is  not  used.  The  two  beams  which  are  re- 
spectively reflected  and  transmitted  by  OC  and  OD  pass  upwards 
in  a  common  vertical  direction,  and  have  their  edges  in  complete 
contact  along  a  plane  through  OL  normal  to  the  paper.  The 
beams  thus  brought  into  contact  are  reflected  once  more  at  the 
silvering  on  the  face  GH,  and  pass  out  through  the  face  HC 
parallel  to  their  original  direction. 

In  the  above  discussion  the  action  of  the  juxtapositor  has  been 
explained  in  a  particular  case — namely,  when  attached  to  a  spectro- 
photometer immediately  in  front  of  the  collimator  slit — and  we 


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368  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinbv/rgh,         [i 

have  spoken  of  the  *'  comparison "  beam  as  entering  the  face  AB^ 
while  the  absorbed  beam  was  supposed  to  enter  the  face  D& 
But  obviously  these  are  merely  the  special  circumstances  of  a 
particular  mode  of  application  of  the  apparatus,  and  the  latter 
might  be  attached  to  a  spectrophotometer  in  any  other  way,  and 
would  work  equally  well,  provided  that  one  of  the  beams — it  doea 
not  matter  which — is  made  to  fall  normally  on  the  face  AB,  and 
the  other  to  fall  normally  on  the  face  D£ ;  and  provided  also  that 
the  point  O  (fig.  2)  be  in  a  plane  optically  conjugate  to  the  retina 
of  the  observer's  eye.  The  latter  condition  is  necessary  to  avoid 
the  appearance  of  diffraction  effects  caused  by  the  cutting  off  of 
the  edges  of  the  two  beams  at  the  edge  of  the  silvering  on  the 
interface ;  and  also  because  the  juxtapositor  cannot  be  so  exactly 
made  that  the  two  beams  emerge  from  it  quite  parallel  to  each 
other ;  but  as  can  easily  be  seen,  their  edges  in  such  a  case  will 
once  more  be  brought  in  contact  in  any  plane  where  a  real  image 
of  the  point  0  is  produced  by  the  parts  of  the  optical  train  of  the 
spectrophotometer. 

An  important,  and  indeed  one  may  almost  say  essential,  principle 
of  such  an  apparatus  has  been  successfully  observed,  namely,  that 
each  of  the  two  beams  of  light  should  pass  through  exactly  the 
same  length  of  glass.  When  this  condition  is  not  fulfilled  the 
light  from  one  beam  will  be  absorbed  to  a  greater  extent  than  the 
light  from  the  other,  and  an  error  will  thus  be  introduced.  Of 
course,  in  theory  at  least,  an  appliance  faulty  in  this  respect  might 
be  used  correctly  were  its  differential  absorption  found  accurately 
beforehand ;  but  the  correction  would  have  to  be  ascertained  for 
a  great  number  of  different  wave-lengths  throughout  the  visible 
spectrum,  and  every  observation  made  with  the  spectrophotometer 
when  the  appliance  was  in  use  would  have  to  be  individually 
corrected.  That  the  passage  through  even  a  short  length  of  glass 
causes  marked  absorption  in  a  beam  of  light,  particularly  at  the 
blue  end  of  the  spectrum,  has  been  shown  by  various  workers, 
among  others  by  Nichols  and  Snow;*  and  the  knowledge  of  thia 
fact  caused  the  author  to  reject  an  earlier  design  which,  though 

*  **  Note  on  the  Selective  Absorption  of  Light  by  Optical  Glass  and  Calc- 
spar."  By  Edward  L.  Nichols  and  Benjamin  W.  Snow.  PhU  Mag.  (6), 
No.  208,  pp.  379-882,  April  1892. 


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1903-4.]     Mr  J.  K.  Milne  an  a  New  Foimi  of  Juxtapositor,  359 

otherwise  satisfactory,  could  not  claim  to  be  entirely  symmetrical 
as  regards  absorption  with  respect  to  the  two  beams  of  light.  Of 
course,  as  regards  symmetry,  absorption  is  not  the  only  thing  to 
be  taken  into  account :  the  reflections  and  refractions  of  the  two 
beams  must  be  the  same ;  but  an  examination  of  the  figures  will 
show  that  each  of  the  two  beams  of  light  in  this  apparatus  sufiers 
two  reflections  and  four  refractions  {i,e,  into  the  glass,  into  and 
out  of  the  cement,  and  finally  out  of  the  glass).  This  form  of  juxta- 
positor,  as  the  author  originally  designed  it  and  had  it  constructed, 
was  arranged  in  what  at  first  sight  appears  to  be  a  symmetrical 
manner,  and  the  fallacy  involved  was  not  observed  till  later  on. 


Fig.  3.— The  letter  0  cannot  be  shown  in  the  above  diagram,  but  its 
position  is  the  same  as  in  fig.  2  (a)  and  (/3). 

In  this  older  form  the  upper  of  the  two  blocks  of  glass  which 
compose  the  apparatus  was  cut  through  at  an  angle  of  45*",  as 
shown  by  the  line  GB  (fig.  2j8).  The  triangular  comer  so  detached 
was  cemented  on  again,  the  cemented  junction  GB  in  the  path  of 
the  upper  beam  being  for  the  purpose  of  balancing  the  cemented 
junction  DO  in  the  path  of  the  lower  beam.  The  reasoning  as 
to  the  symmetry  of  this  form  with  regard  to  the  two  beams  of 
light  is  as  follows: — Each  beam  is  twice  reflected  at  a  silvered 
surface.  Each  beam  passes  once  from  air  to  glass  and  once  from 
glass  to  air.  Each  beam  passes  through  the  same  total  amount  of 
glass.  Each  beam  passes  through  one  cemented  junction.  Hence 
the  juxtapositor  is  symmetrical  with  respect  to  the  two  beams. 
In  this  reasoning,  however,  we  are  assuming  the  eflfect  of  a  junction 
to  be  the  absorption  of  the  light  owing  to  its  cement  layer,  while 


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360  Proceedings  of  Moi/al  Society  of  Edinburgh.  [ssss. 

in  reality  this  effect  is  inappreciable,  the  cement  layer  being  -so 
extremely  thin;  and  we  are  leaving  out  of  account  the  effect  of 
the  reflection  by  such  a  junction,  which  is  not  inappreciable,  as 
will  be  shown  later.  Now,  were  it  the  case  that  all  the  light  of 
the  upper  beam  fell  on  the  silvered  part  OC  of  the  interface  DC, 
and  none  of  it  on  the  unsilvered  part  OD,  then  each  of  the  two 
beams  would  lose  the  same  fraction  of  its  light  as  it  passed 
through  the  cemented  joint  in  its  path,  i.e.,  as  the  upper  beam 
passed  through  the  junction  GB  and  the  lower  beam  passed 
through  the  junction  DO.  It  is  necessary,  however,  that  the 
lower  edge  of  the  upper  beam  should  fall  at  least  some  distance 
below  the  point  O  in  the  figure,  because  only  in  this  way  can 
the  full  intensity  of  light  be  ensured  right  up  to  the  edge  of  the 
silvered  part  OC  of  the  interface  CD.  Assuming  then  that  we 
have  the  lower  part  of  the  upper  beam  of  light  falling  on  the 
unsilvered  part  of  the  interface  DO,  there  must  exist  the  following 
state  of  affairs  : — A  certain  fraction  of  the  light  of  the  upper  beam 
is  reflected  by  the  junction  GB  and  passes  out  through  the  face 
AG,  leaving  the  beam  that  passes  on  towards  the  interface  CD  so 
much  the  less  intense.  The  light  lost  in  a  similar  manner  by 
the  lower  beam,  however,  by  being  reflected  at  the  junction  DO 
and  sent  out  through  the  face  CF  is  more  or  less  made  up  for  by 
the  light  of  the  lower  part  of  the  upper  beam  which  is  reflected 
vertically  upwards  from  the  same  junction  DO. 

If,  however,  the  junction  BG  (fig.  2)8)  were  to  be  omitted,  and 
the  upper  beam  of  light  arranged  to  cover  the  whole  face  AB  (fig. 
3),  then  the  gain  and  the  loss  to  the  light  of  the  lower  beam, 
caused  by  the  interface  at  OD,  would  exactly  balance  each  other. 
Provided  always  that  is,  that  the  juxtapositor  is  placed  in  the 
optical  train  after  that  piece  of  apparatus,  whatever  its  particular 
form,  whose  function  it  is  to  equalise  the  intensity  of  the  two 
beams  of  light,  for  then  we  have  two  beams  of  equal  intensity 
falling  on  the  same  surface  (OD)  at  the  same  angle,  and 
accordingly  the  reflections  will  be  of  exactly  the  same  magnitude. 

In  those  cases  where  the  juxtapositor  is  not  so  placed  we  have 
the  loss  or  gain  of  intensity  of  the  lower  beam  given  by  a  quantity 
which  is  the  reflection  at  the  cement  of  the  difference  of  the  in- 
tensities of  the  two  beams,  and  even  here  the  error   introduced 


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1908-4.]     Mr  J.  R  Milne  on  a  New  Form  of  Juoctapositor.  361 

will,  iu  general,  be  less  than  it  would  be  were  such  a  junction  as 
BG  (fig.  2)8)  arranged  in  the  path  of  the  upper  beam.  Moreover, 
in  such  cases  to  make  the  junction  CD  optically  more  homo- 
geneous, such  a  liquid  as  the  well-known  a-monobromonapthaline 
might  be  used  between  the  faces  of  the  glass  blocks  instead  of 
the  ordinary  cement. 

The  following  experiment  was  undertaken  with  the  view  of 
approximately  ascertaining  the  amount  of  light  reflected  by  such 
a  cemented  jimction  OD  as  occurs  in  this  juxtapositor.  The  face 
D£  of  the  latter  was  blocked  up  by  an  opaque  screen,  so  that  no 
light  could  pass  through.  The  apparatus  was  then  brought  near 
a  window,  and  the  image  of  the  latter  produced  by  reflections 
at  the  silvered  part  CO  of  the  interface,  and  at  the  silvering  on 
the  face  HG  was  observed  by  looking  into  the  face  HC.  No 
image  whatever  could  be  observed  caused  by  a  reflection  from  the 
unsilvered  part  OD  of  the  interface,  and  not  even  an  increased 
darkness  could  be  seen  corresponding  to  the  places  where  the 
images  of  the  window  bars  would  fall.  As  a  still  more  stringent 
test,  the  juxtapositor,  with  the  lower  face  DE  blocked  up  as 
before,  was  brought  quite  close  to  an  incandescent  electric  lamp. 
In  this  case  an  image  caused  by  reflection  from  the  unsilvered  part 
OD  of  the  interface  could  be  seen,  but  the  image  did  not  show 
the  glass  or  brass  fittings  of  the  lamp,  but  only  the  glowing 
filament  itself.  Accordingly,  it  is  clear  that  while  there  must  be 
some  difference  between  the  refractive  indices  of  the  glass  and  of 
the  cement  used  in  the  juxtapositor,  which  gives  rise  to  reflection 
of  light  at  the  cemented  surface,  the  fraction  of  the  total  light  so 
reflected  is  very  small  indeed.  It  was  noted  also  that  the  colour 
of  that  part  of  the  glowing  filament  which  was  reflected  by  the 
unsilvered  part  OD  of  the  interface  appeared  to  be  unchanged, 
which  indicates  that  the  small  difference  in  the  refractive  indices 
of  the  glass  and  of  the  cement  must  be  at  least  approximately 
constant  for  different  wave-lengths. 

The  edge  of  the  silvered  part  of  the  face  PQRS  (fig.  1)  of  the 
upper  block  of  glass  is  cut  off  very  trim  and  sharp  by  means  of  an 
ivory  chisel  and  nitric  acid.  This  is  a  most  important  point  in  the 
construction,  because  it  is  at  this  place  that  the  two  beams  of 
light  unite,   and  on  the  abruptness  of  the  termination  of  the 


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362  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinhwrgh,  [i 

reflecting  surface  depends  the  perfectness  of  the  joining  of  th& 
beams. 

It  is  to  be  noted  that  the  use  of  polarisation  for  r^pilating  and 
measuring  the  light  intensities  is  not  prohibited  by  the  adoption, 
of  this  appliance,  even  when  the  light  is  polarised  before  being 
passed  through  the  latter.  No  change  of  polarisation  or  produc- 
tion of  polarisation  can  be  caused  by  the  entrance  to  or  exit  from 
the  glass,  for  that  only  takes  place  normally  to  the  various  feces. 
If  the  two  beams  are  plane  polarised  vertically  and  horizontally 
before  entrance,  with  a  view  to  the  adjustment  of  their  relative 
intensities  later  on  by  means  of  a  Nicol  prism,  then  because  the 
plane  of  polarisation  in  each  case  is  either  in  or  normal  to  the 
plane  of  incidence  on  the  silver  surfaces  no  change  of  polarisation 
can  occur.  On  the  other  hand,  if  the  two  beams  have  their 
respective  planes  of  polarisation  inclined  to  the  vertical  and  to  the- 
horizontal,  these  beams,  because  they  are  each  twice  reflected  at 
parallel  silver  surfaces,  will  emerge  plane  polarised  still,  though 
the  plane  of  polarisation  of  each  has  been  rotated  to  some  extent. 
Hence  in  both  cases  the  analysing  Nicol  can  be  used  as  before 
for  the  purpose  of  measuring  the  light  intensity,  although  the  zero 
will  have  been  permanently  displaced  through  a  definite  angle. 

A  suggested  application  of  the  juxtapositor  described  above  will 
be  readily  understood  by  anyone  conversant  with  the  construction 
of  Laurent's  '*  half-shade "  polarimeter.  In  that  instrument  two- 
parallel  beams  of  light  polarised  in  planes  at  an  angle  to  one 
another  are  passed  through  a  substance  whose  rotative  power  it  is^ 
desired  to  measure,  and  are  then  analysed  by  means  of  a  Nicol 
prism.  By  properly  adjusting  the  position  of  the  latter,  the  two- 
half-circles  of  light  seen  in  the  eyepiece  of  the  instrument,  due  Uh 
the  two  beams,  can  be  made  equally  bright.  It  is  found  that  in 
this  way  a  much  more  accurate  setting  of  the  rotating  Nicol  can  be 
obtained  than  when,  as  in  the  ordinary  case,  only  one  beam  of 
light  is  employed  and  the  Nicol  is  set  to  extinction.  But  the^ 
accuracy  of  the  measurement  in  lAurent's  improved  form  of  instru- 
ment turns  on  the  degree  of  precision  with  which  the  eye  is  able  Uy 
determine  when  the  two  halves  of  the  circle  seen  in  the  eyepiece 
are  equally  bright.  Now,  these  two  halves  are  separated  by  a 
dark  line,  and  accordingly,  as  explained  above  in  the  case  of  tbe^ 


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1908-4.]    Mr  J.  R  Milne  on  a  New  Form  of  Juxtapoaitor.  863 

spectrophotometer,  increased  accuracy  of  measurement  would  result 
from  getting  the  two  bright  semi-circles  into  perfect  contact  along 
their  common  diameter.  By  the  use  of  this  juxtapositor  it  is 
hoped  this  may  be  accomplished,  and  the  accuracy  of  polari- 
metrical  measurements  correspondingly  improved. 

The  experiments  which  led  up  to  the  designing  of  this  form 
of  juxtapositor  were  made  in  the  Physical  Laboratory  of  the 
University  of  Edinburgh.  The  apparatus  employed  was  in  part 
supplied  by  a  grant  fropi  the  Moray  Endowment  Fund,  to  the 
trustees  of  which  the  author's  best  thanks  are  due. 


{Isiued  separately  January  17,  1906.) 


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364  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh.         [a 


The  Three-line  Determinants  of  a  Six-by-Three  Array. 
By  Thomas  Mnir,  LL.D. 

(Seoond  copy  of  MS.  received  September  12,  1904.* 
Read  November  7,  1904.) 


(1)  If  the  array  in  question  be 


<h     h 


9\ 
9^ 
9% 


*8  » 


its  score  of  three-line  determinants  |  a^p^f^  \  ,  |  o^^^/s  I  >  •  *  •  - 
may  be  viewed  as  consisting  of  two  complementary  sets  of  ten, 
each  of  the  first  set  containing  at  least  two  columns  taken  from 
\  0^62^3  I ,  and  each  of  the  second  set  at  least  two  columns  taken 
from  |/i<72^|.  Further,  either  set  of  ten  may  be  viewed  as 
consisting  of  one  unique  member  and  three  sub-sets  of  three 
members  each,  the  members  of  a  sub-set  being  derivable  from  one 
Another  by  performing  the  cyclical  substitutions 


In  this  way  a  convenient  notation  for  the  twenty  determinants 
will  be  found  to  be 


1  «lV8   1 

1  "i  Vs  1 .   1  \<^^%  1 .   1  <'i«s/s  1 
1  ai6,//j  1 ,   1  \cj^  1 ,   1  e^a^g^  | 

-■ 

0 
1,2,3 
4.   5.   6 
7,   8,   9 

1  /i!7A  1                     ] 
1  <\9^t  1 .    1  «i  Vs  1 .   1  \f^t  1 
Cl^2/«  1 .    1  ai/2^8  1  »    1  *1?S*S   1 

.  =  ■ 

0' 
1'.   2',   3' 
4'.    5',   6' 
r,   8',   9' 

*  The  original  MS.  was  despatched  by  the  aathor  from  Cape  Town  on 
20th!March  1904,  but  was  lost  in  transit  through  the  post.^Sec  R.S.E.] 


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1904-5.]  Three4me  Determinants  of  a  Six-by-Three  Array.  365 

(2)  T?ie  prodtk:t  of  any  two  complementary  determinants  of  a 
six-by-three  array  is  expressible  in  six  different  toays  as  an 
aggregate  of  three  similar  products. 

Taking  as  an  example  the  product  |  a^b^c^  \'\f\9^z  I  ^'^'  ^^\  ^^ 
have  from  a  well-known  theorem  by  interchanging  /,  g^  h  in 
succession  with  a 

«iVf  H /i^a^  1  =  \fi^^\'\<h9Jhi\  +  \lh^Wfi<^\  +  \fhf>^\^f^9^\* 

%.e.  00'  =  88'  +   22'  +   55'. 

By  interchanging  f  g,  h  in  succession  with  b  and  f  g^  h  in 
succession  with  c  two  similar  identities  are  obtained,  viz. 

00'  =  99'  +   33'  +   66', 
00'  =   77'  +   11'   +   44', 

which,  however,  it  is  simpler  to  view  as  derivatives  of  the  first  by 
cyclical  substitution.  On  altering  the  order  of  the  factors  in  the 
given  product  the  same  procedure  leads  us  to 

O'O  =  8'8  +  6'6  +  I'l, 
O'O  -  9'9  +  4'4  +  2'2, 
O'O  =   7'7   +  5'5   +   3'3. 

It  is  clear  (1)  that  what  is  here  done  with  00'  can  be  done  with 
any  similar  product;  (2)  that  each  product  on  the  right,  by 
reason  of  the  mode  of  obtaining  it  from  the  product  on  the  left^ 
will  consist  of  factors  that  are  complementary,  (3)  that  the 
theorem  used  will  not  give  more  than  six  expressions,  because 
the  interchanging  of  two  letters  with  two, — which  is  the  remaining 
possibility, — is  the  same  in  effect  as  interchanging  one  with  one. 

(3)  The  nine  products  in  the  first  triad  of  expressions  for  00', 
....  are  the  same  as  the  nine  in  the  second  triads  and  further 
can  be  so  arranged  that  a  row-and-column  interchange  wUl  produce 
the  latter  triad,  any  five  of  the  expressions  thus  giving  the  sixth. 

Thus  in  the  case  of  00'  such  an  arrangement  is 

88' +  22' +  55'  88'  + 66' +  11' 

66' +  99' +  33'    and    22' +  99' +  44' 
11' +  44' +  77'  55' +  33' +  77' 


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366  Proeeedingi  of  Boyal  Socidy  of  Edinburgh,         [sm 


That  this  must  in  all  cases  hold  is  evident  from  consideiiiig 
that  the  interchanges,  which  when  made  on  00'  produce  the  nine 
products  of  the  first  triad,  are 


fi),  CO.  C). 
I).  D,  Q 


and  that  these  when  taken  in  columns  are  exactly  the  interchanges 
which  need  to  be  performed  on  00'  to  produce  the  products  of  the 
second  triad. 

(4)  The  ten  groups  of  such  sets  of  six  expressions  may  thus  be 
compactly  exhibited  as  follows : — 

00' 


11' 


00- 

-44' 

65' 

-77' 

-66' 

22' 

-88' 

33' 
44' 

99' 

00' 

-22' 
33' 
66' 

77' 

-99' 
56' 

88' 

-11' 

-77' 

00' 

-11' 

-44' 
88' 

-33' 

22' 

-55' 

99' 

66' 

11' 

44' 

77' 

88- 

22' 

66' 

66' 

99' 

33' 

22' 

00' 
-44- 

-65' 
66' 

-88'' 
~33'" 

-99' 

11' 

77' 

56' 

00' 

-22' 
-88' 

00' 
-11' 

-6G' 

-33' 

-77' 

11' 

66' 

44' 

88' 

99' 

-22' 
33' 

-55' 

99' 

77' 

44' 

33' 


00'  1  -  66' 

-99' 

-  55'      44' 

-  77'  i     22' 

11' 

88' 

66' 


00' 

-11' 

-88' 

-33' 

22' 

44' 

-99' 

56' 

77' 

99' 


00' 
-22' 
-44' 

-33' 
11' 

-66'| 

77' 1 

88' 

55' 

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1904-5.]  Th/ree4ine  Determinants  of  a  Six^by* Three  Array.  367 

Of  course  in  the  sixty  equations  here  implied  every  distinct 
•equation  is  repeated  four  times;  for  example,  the  equation 
00' -11' -44' -77'  =  ^  occurs  under  each  of  the  headings  00', 
ir,  44',  77'.     The  number  of  distinct  equations  is  thus  15. 

(5)  These  fifteen  equations  are  not  all  independent,  the  fact 
being  that  any  one  of  the  ten  sets  of  six  gives  rise  to  all  the 
remaining  nine  equations.     Thus,  taking  the  first  set  of  six,  viz. 

00'-ll'-44'-7r  =  ^, 
00'-88'-22'-56'  =  0, 
00'-66'-99'-33'  =  6?, 
00'-ll'-88'-66'  =  6>, 
00'-44'-22'-99'  =  0, 
00'-77'-55'-33'-(?, 

we  can  eliminate  from  pairs  of  them  the  nine  binomials 

00' -11',  00' -44',  00' -77', 
00' -22',  00' -55',  00' -88', 
00' -33',    00' -66',    00' -99', 

thus  obtaining  nine  other  equations  of  the  same  form,  which  are 
the  nine  in  question.  It  is  thus  seen  that  the  connecting 
equations  will  be  better  viewed  as  statements  of  the  equality  of 
binomials;  and  the  theorem  which  this  view  leads  to  is  that 
either  the  sum  or  the  difference  of  any  two  of  the  products 
00',  1 1',  ....  is  expressible  in  two  ways  as  the  suni  or  diflference 
of  other  two.  The  forty-five  possible  binomials  may  be  arranged 
as  follows  to  show  these  equalities  : — 

00'-ll'  =  77'  +  44'  =  88'  +  66'] 
00' -22' =  88' +  55' =99' +  44', 
00' -33' =  99' +  66' =  77' +  55'^ 

00'-44'  =  ll'  +  77'  =  22'  +  99'| 
00'  -  55'  =  22'  +  88'  =  33'  +  77'  / 
00' -66' =  33' +  99' =11' +  88') 

00'-77'  =  ll'  +  44'  =  33'  +  55') 
00'  -  88'  =  22'  +  55'  =  1 1'  +  66'  ' 


uu  -  00  =  zz  +  00  =  1 1  +  bb  / 
00'  -  99'  =  33'  +  66'  =  22'  +  44'  ) 


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368  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh,         [sbs. 

11' -  22' =  65' -66' =  99'- 77' \ 
22'  -  33'  =  66'  -  44'  =  77'  -  88'  \, 
33'-ll'  =  44'-55'  =  88'-99') 

11' -55' =22' -66' =  33' -44', 

11' -99' =  22' -77' =  33' -88', 

44' -88' =  55' -99' =  66' -77'. 

It  will  be  seen  that  the  second  line  is  derivable  from  the  first, 
and  the  third  from  the  second,  by  the  cyclical  substitution :  and 
that  the  number  of  such  triads  is  four.  The  last  three  lines  are 
not  so  related  :  the  cyclical  substitution  if  performed  on  any  one 
of  these  would  simply  reproduce  that  one. 

(6)  It  is  interesting  to  note  that  to  each  of  the  foregoing  fifteen 
sets  of  three  equivalents  a  fourth  equivalent  of  a  different  form 
may  be  added.  Thus  for  the  seventh  line  we  have  the  additional 
equivalent 

\<hh\    IVsl    l^sM 

I/1I72I     \f^z\    l/s^il 

\<hh\    l^sl     1^1 

for  this  can  be  shown  equal  to 

l^'^V'    l^'fll    i.e.    44'+ll', 


and  as  the  interchanges 


OX') 


alter  only  the  sign  of  the  three-line  determinant,*  the  latter  must 
also  be  equal  to 

\figA\    \fi9^\ 

and 


t.(9.      3'3  +  5'5 


*  The  other  similar  interohange  \     j\  gives  nothiDg  nei 


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1904-5.]  Three-line  Determinants  of  a  Six-hy-Three  Airay.  369 

(7)  Turning  now  from  the  products  whose  factors  are  comple- 
mentary to  those  whose  factors  are  not,  we  see  that  the  taking 
of  0  along  with  any  other  of  its  own  set  {e.g,  01,  02,  .  .  .)  would 
be  nugatory,  because  the  two  factors  of  any  such  product  would 
have  two  columns  in  common.  But  01,  02,  .  .  .  ,  09  being  on 
this  account  unfruitful,  it  follows  that  the  same  cannot  be  said  of 
or,  02',  .  .  .  ,  09'.  As  for  the  products  which  begin  with  1,  they 
must  be  nine  in  number,  because  if  they  cannot  be  taken  along 
with  any  particular  one  that  follows  it  in  its  own  set,  this  very 
fact  ensures  fruitfulness  if  taken  along  with  the  corresponding  one 
of  the  other  set :  as  a  matter  of  fact  the  useful  cases  are 

12,  13,  14',  15,  16',  17;  18',  19. 

Similarly  the  useful  products  beginning  with  2  are 

23.  24',  25',  26,  27,  28',  29' ; 

those  beginning  with  3, 

34,  35',  36',  37',  38,  39' : 

and  so  on.  It  is  thus  seen  that  if  we  confine  ourselves  to  the 
products  whose  first  factor  at  least  is  taken  from  the  first  set  of 
ten  and  is  represented  by  a  smaller  integer  than  the  second  factor, 
the  number  of  fruitful  products  is 

9  +  8  +  7+    .  .  .    +3  +  2  +  1 . 

From  every  one  of  these  products,  however,  another  fruitful 
product  is  obtainable  by  changing  each  factor  into  its  complemen- 
tary.    The  total  number  is  thus  90. 

(8)  Taking  the  first  of  the  ninety,  viz.  01',  we  have  on  inter- 
changing c,  ^,  ^  in  succession  with  a 

I  «lV3  M  '''\9J^Z  i     =     I  1/1*2^3  hi  '•l«2^3  I     +     I  KhH  H  ^l5'2«8  I  » 

t.c.  or     =  23  -  59. 

Now,  no  new  result  is  got  by  interchanging  c,  g,  h  in  succession 
with  6,  nor  by  interchanging  c,  ^,  h  in  succession  with  c. 
Further,  by  reversing  the  order  of  the  factors  in  01'  and 
applying  our  theorem,  we  merely  repeat  the  same  result.  We 
thus  learn  that  each  of  the  ninety  products  of  pairs  of  non-cow- 
plementary  three-line  minors  formed  from  a  dx-hy-three  array  can 
PROC.  ROY.  SOC.  EDIN.—VOL.  XXV.  24 


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370  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh,         [sess. 

he  expressed  in  one  and  only  one  way  as  a  sum  or  difference  of  tvoo 
other  such  products. 

(9)  We  are  thus  prepared  to  learn  that  if  we  take  either  of 
the  two  products  whose  sum  or  difference  has  been  obtained  in 
this  way  as  an  equivalent  for  a  given  product  of  the  same  kind, 
and  apply  our  theorem  as  before,  we  shall  merely  get  another 
repetition  of  the  previous  result.     Thus 


1  .'/i  Vs  1 

•1  ^i^A  1    =    1  «i Vs  M  ^i^A 

+      1  /^iVs  II  <^l«2^3  1 

i.e. 

23    =          or 

+               59, 

and 

1  'h  Vs 

^i(f/^s\    =    'l/iVaHqVsl 

+    1  a,  Vs  M  <^i^A  1 » 

i.e. 

-  59      =             -  23 

+          or. 

It  follows  therefore  that  since  there  are  ninety  products  and 
each  can  only  occur  once  in  an  identity  along  with  two  others, 
the  number  of  such  identities  is  thirty.  Probably  the  best 
arrangement  of  the  thirty  is  that  which  brings  into  juxtaposition 
those  that  form  a  triad,  and  places  opposite  to  each  other  those 
that  are  complementary.     The  result  of  this  is : — 

or  -  23  +  59  =  (?  =  O'l  -  2'3'  +  5'9' 
02'  -  31  +  67  =  (?  =  0'2  -  3'r  +  67' 
03'  -  12  +  48  -  (?  =  0'3  -  r2'  +  4'8' 

04'  -  66  +  38  =  (?  =  0'4  -  5'6'  +  8'8' 
05'  -  64  +  19  =  (?  =  0'5  -  6'4'  +  r9' 
06'  -  45  +  27  =  (?  =  0'6  -  4'5'  +  27' 

07'  -  89  +  26  =  ^  =  07  -  8'9'  +  2'6' 
08'  -  97  +  34  =  (?  =  0'8  -  97'  +  3'4' 
09'  -  78  +  15  =  ^  =  0'9  -  7'8'  +  1'5' 

14'  +  82'  +  69'  =  ^  =  r4  +  8'2  +  6'9 
25'  +  93'  +  47'  =  ^  =  2'5  +  9'3  +  4'7 
36'  +  71'  +  58'  =  (?  =  3'6  +  7'1  +  5'8 

16'  -r  49'  +  73'  =  ^  =  r6  +  4'9  +  7'3 
24'  +  57'  +  81'  =  (?  -  2'4  +  57  +  8'1 
35'  +  68'  +  92'  =  (?  =  3'5  +  6'8  +  9'2. 


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1904-5.]  Three-line  Determinants  of  a  Six-hy-Th/ree  Array.  371 

(10)  The  relations  between  products  of  three  factors  it  is  less 
necessary  to  study,  the  foundation  of  them  being  laid  in  what 
precedes.     For  example,  there  are  numerous  results  like 


l(or+  59)  =  2(02'+  67)  =  3(03'+  48) 

which   is  clearly  obtainable   from   the  first   triad  of  §  8. 
easily  verifiable  from  the  foregoing  are  the  pair 


Less 


1  86 
4  29 
753 

the  process  being — 


-  000', 


r8'6' 
4'  2'  9' 
7' 5' 3 


O'O'O, 


1  86 
429 
763 


=  1(23-59)  +  4(56-38)  +  7(89-26) 

=  1  or  +  4  04'  +7  07', 

=  0(11'+  44'+  77') 
=  000'. 


{Issued  separately  Ja/imary  20,  1905.) 


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372  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh.  [si 


The  Sum  of  the  Signed  Primckry  Minors  of  a 
Determinant.     By  Thomas  Mnir,  LL..D. 

(MS.  roceived  July  25,  1904.     Read  November  7,  1904.) 

(1)  The  fundamental  propositions  in  regard  to  the  sum  of  the 
signed  primary  minors  of  a  determinant  are — 

(A)  An  expression  for  the  negative  sum  of  the  signed  primary 
minors  of  any  determinant  is  got  by  taking  a  determinant  of  the 
next  higher  order  whose  first  dement  is  zero  with  the  given  deter- 
minant for  complementary  minor y  and  whose  remaining  elements 
are  units  all  positive  or  all  negative, 

(B)  The  sum  of  the  signed  primary  minors  of  any  determinant  is  ex- 
pressible as  a  determinant  of  the  next  lower  order,  any  element  (r ,  s) 
of  the  latter  being  the  sum  of  the  signed  elements  of  a  tuKhline  minor  of 
the  former,  viz,,  the  sum  (r,  s)  -  (r,  s  +  1)  -  (r  +  1 ,  s)  +  (r  +  1 ,  s  +  1 ) . 

(C)  If  the  elements  of  a  determinant  he  all  increas&l  by  the  same 
quantity  ta,  the  determinant  is  thereby  increased  by  <o  times  the 
sum  of  its  signed  pnmxiry  minors,* 

(2)  By  the  application  of  the  first  of  these  the  following  results 
are  readily  obtained — 

77ie  sum  of  the  signed  primary  minors  of  the  alternant 
\  a^'^cP  ....  I  M  equal  to  the  alternant  itself,  (I) 

The  sum  of  tliA  signed  primary  minors  of  a  circulant  of  the  n** 
order  is  equal  to  n  times  the  quotient  of  the  circulant  by  the  sum  of 
its  variables.  (II) 

Thus,  the  sum  of  the  signed  primary  minors  of  C(a ,  b,  c) 


111 

=    -    1 

1      1     1 

^(a-^b-^e), 

I     a     b     c 

a-^-h-Ve 

a     b     c 

I      c     a     h 

a  +  b-^c 

cab 

1      h     c     a 

a  +  ^  +  r 

h     c     a 

-3     11      1 

-^(a  +  i>  +  c), 

1       .     a     b    c 

,     c     a     h 

.      h     r     a 

3C(a,  b,  c)  ^  {a  +  b-{-c). 

*  Proceedings  R 

oy.  Soe,  Edinburgh^ 

zxiv.  pp.  387 

-892. 

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1904-5.]       Signed  Primary  Minors  of  a  Determinant.  373 

TTie  sum  of  the  signed  primary  minors  of  a  zero-axial  sketo  deter- 
minant is  equal  to  a  similar  determinant  of  the  next  higlier  order, 
and  therefore  is  zero  if  the  order  of  the  original  determinant  he  even, 
and  is  the  square  of  a  P/affian  if  the  order  he  odd.  (Ill) 

(3)  By  the  application  of  the  second  fundamental  result  (B) 
the  case  of  a  centro-synunetric  determinant  can  be  equally  easily 
dealt  with,  the  result  being — 

The  sum  of  the  signed  primary  miiurrs  of  a  centrosymmetric 
determinant  is  equal  to  a  similar  determinant  of  the  next  lower 
order,  and  therefore  is  resolvable  into  two  factors.  (IV) 

Thus,  the  sum  of  the  signed  primary  minors  of 

a  b  c 
d  e  d 
c    h    a 


a-h-d+e     b-c-e+d 
d-e-c+h    e-d-h+a 

=  (a-c)(a-26-c-2(;  +  2c). 


=  (a-6-(/  +  e)2-(ft-(;-e  +  d)2, 


(4)  The  case  of  a  continuant  requires  and  is  worthy  of  a  little 
more  consideration.  Restricting  ourselves,  merely  for  shortness' 
sake,  to  the  six-line  continuant 


/       *i     h    b,    h     h       \ 
I    «i    a,    Og    a^    Oj    a,    » 

\  ^'l       ^2      ^8      ^4       ^6  /  » 


and  denoting  the  sum  of  its  signed  primary  minors  by  prefixing  to 
it  an  M,  we  know  to  begin  with  that  this  sum  equals 


1 


1 

Co 


1111 


^8      «4 


Fixing  the  attention  on  the  last  column  and  last  row,  the  non- 


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374  Proceedings  of  Boyal  Society  of  Edinburgh,  [sbs. 

zero  elements  of  which  are  (1,  7) ,  (6,  7) ,  (7,  7) ,  (7,  6) ,  (7,  1),  we 
obtain  the  equivalent  expression 

(7,7)cof  +  (6,7)(7,6)cof  +  (l,7)(7,l)cof  +  (lJ)(7,6)cof  +  (7,l)(6,7)cof 

/  h,,,,    \  /  ^y   "    \     /   ^1  •••    \ 


1  «!  ^      .      . 

1  Cj  O^  63 

I        .  Cg  Oj      63    I 

1      .      .  (•«    a^ 
1      .      . 


-   K 


^8       '*4 


11111 
Oi       &!         .  .         . 

.      •     Cj     a,     b^ 


Of  the  two  determinants  here  written  at  full  length  the  first  is 
seen  to  be 


=   (    «1    •    •    •    «4    )    +    «4 


I  ai  61  . 

1  C^  Og  ^2 

1  .  c^  a,  ^ 

1  .  .  c     ' 


■\rC^Cfyr 


and  the  second 


.  (  Oi . . .  a,  » -  6J  a, . . .  a,  I  +  Vsl  «i<'2  )  -  ''AM«i)  +  hh^A 


It  thus  follows  tliat 
M 


+  (  «!  •  •  •  «5  j  -  (Cs  +  M  «i  '  •  •  «4  j 


-   (V4' 


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1904-6.]      Signed  Primary  Minors  of  a  DeteimtinanL  375 

and  consequently  that  the  sum  of  the  signed  primary  minors  of  a 
continuant  of  the  n^  order  can  be  got  when  the  corresponding 
sums  for  the  cases  of  the  (n  -  1  )***  and  (n  -  2)"*  order  are  known. 

(5)  By  repeated  application  of  the  preceding  resiilt  we  obtain 
ultimately     an     expression     involving     only     the     continuants 


I  Oi   ag  .  .  .  a^  I ,  i  Oi ,  02.  .  .  .  ,  a^  I ,   .    .    .   and 


their    co- 


efficients.    The  following  is  the  general  theorem  thus  reached : — 
If  the  cof actors  of  a^ ,  anan_j ,  anan_^an_2 ,  .  .  .in  the  continuant 


I  *i>  %>  •  •  •  >  ^  i 
\    Ci  . . .  / 


denoted  by  K„_j,  K^.j,  K^.j,  .  .  .  ,  and 


the  eof actors  of  a^,  a^aj,  a^ajag,  .  .  ,  be  denoted  by  H„_i ,  H^.j, 
Hn-8  y  '  '  '  1  tlie  sum  of  the  signed  primary  minors  of  the  con- 
tinuant K„  is 

K^i  +  K,_,(l ,  b,_^  +  c,.  J  Hj ,  -  1 )  (VI) 

+  K^-8(l  .  K-2  +  ^n^2  >  ^n-i^*i-2  +  <'*«-l^n-2  $  ^^ ,  -  Hj  ,   1) 
+  K„_4(l  ,  6h_3  +  C„_8  ,  0„_20n_3  +  C^^^C^^^  ,  0„_jO„_2"n-8 

+  CH_iCn_2C«-8  5  Hg  ,  -  H2  ,  H,  -  1 ) 
+ 

+         (1,  ^  +  Ci>  Vi  +  Vi>  •  •  •  .$H„_^,-H«_2,  .  .  .  ). 
For  example,  the  sum  of  the  signed  primary  minors  of  the  con- 


tinuant 


/  W  h  \ 

Kg,  i.e,  {  a^    a.^   Og  j  is 


^2  +  <^2K»  -1) 

+        (1 ,  61  +  c, ,  b^b^  +  C2C1.5  a^a^  -  /^jCg  ,  -  Og ,  1) , 
i.e. 

«i«2-^^  +  ^(«8-^2-^2) 

+  «2«8  -  V2  -  ^si^l  +  ^)  +  (^^  +  ^2^)  » 

t.c. 

aiOj  +  agOg  +  OgOi  -  01(62  +  ^2)  -  03(61  +  c^) 
—  6|Ci  —  62C2  +  61^2  +  C^C2  . 


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376  Proceedings  of  Hoyal  Society  of  Edinburgh.  [sess. 

(6)  For  the  case  of  a  *  simple'  continuant^  ue,  when  each  of 
the  6*8  is  1  and  each  of  the  c's  is  -  1,  the  expression  (VI 
hecomes 

(ojOa  .  .  .  a„) 
+  (0102  .  .  .  o^_i)  -o^ 
+  (Oi02  .  .  .  o,_2).  {(a._iO,)  +  2} 
+  (ai02  .  .  .  a«_3)  •  {(a^-2'^-ia„)  +  2o«} 
'\r{a^a^  .  .  .  o,_4).  {(o„.80^_j0^.iO.)  +  2(o^_iOh)  +  2} 
+ 

and    therefore,    like    the    continuant    itself,    has    all   its    terms 
positive.  (VII) 

For  example,  the  sum  of  the  signed  primary  minors  of  the 
continuant  (Oj ,  Og ,  Oj ,  oj  is 

+  {(«2«8«4)  +  2aJ 

ue, 

(h!h<H  +  «i  +  «8  +  («i^  +  1)«4  +  «i(^8«4  +  3) 

+  «2«8«4  +  ^  +  3«4» 

i,e, 

+  401  +  02  +  03  +  404. 

(7)  If  the  expression  (VI)  in  §  5  be  arranged  in  the  order  of  the 
U's  and  their  cofactors,  it  becomes 

H,_,  +  H,_j(l,6,  +  CiJKi,-l)  (VIII) 

+  H,_,(1,  6,  +  Cj,  4i6,  +  CiCj$K,,-Ki,  1) 
+ 

which  accoiding  to  (YI)  is  the  sum  of  the  signed  primary  minors 


of 


/    6»-,  ....  b,    \ 

I  a«     a»-i  .  .  .  Oj   Oi  I 
\   e,_,  . . . .  c,    / , 


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1904-5.]      Signed  Primary  Minors  of  a  Determinant. 


377 


— a  result  to  he  expected,  since  generally 
,  .       1       1       1   .  . 


«2 


1       1 


.   . .. 

1 

1 

1 

1  ... 

Cs 

Cj 

<^i 

1  ... 

\ 

*2 

h 

1  ... 

<h 

a, 

«i 

and  therefore 

MllehVs l}  =  M{| cjb^a^  | }.         (IX) 

(8)  When  each  of  the  a's  is  equal  to  a,  each  of  the  h's  to  6,  and 
each  of  the  c's  to  c,  the  H's  and  K's  are  no  longer  distinguishable, 
and  the  expression  (VI)  becomes 

K,_i  +  K«_2.(l,6  +  c$Ki,-l) 

+  K«_3.(l,6  +  c,62  +  c25K2,-Ki,  1) 

+ 

This,  however,  is  best  arranged  in  portions  containing  1 ,  ft  +  c , 
ft^  +  c^ ,  .  .  .  .  ,  and  their  respective  cofactors,  the  result  then  being 

(K«_i,  K,t_2,  K„_8, . . . ,  Kj,  1  jj  1 ,  Kj, . . . ,  K^_3,  Kn-2}  ^-i) 
+  (ft  +  c)  (  K„.2,  K„_g,. . . ,  K„  I  §  1,  Kj, .  . . ,  K._3,K,_2) 

+  {b^  +  c2)(  K„.3, . .  . ,  K,.  1  §  1,  K„ . . . ,  K,_3) 

+ (X) 

or,  say, 

Now  since 

and  the  known  ultimate  form  of  K„  is  an  expression  consisting  of 
terms  descending  by  second  powers  of  a  and  ascending  by  first 
powers  of  5c,  viz. 

it  follows  that  there  must   be   for  Xn  ^^  expression  of  similar 


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378         Proceedings  of  Bayed  Society  of  Edinburgh. 


I 


character.      Towards    finding  this   we   first    note   the   following 
property  of  continuants,  viz. 

The  cof  actors  of  the  elements  in  the  places 

(w,  n),    (7A-1,  w),    (n-2,?0,     •  •  • 
of  the  continitant 

(    ^    ^2  )      or 


(l,w) 


are 


'^-1  >  '^«-2» 


,    #Cj,    I. 


Changing    K„  into    the    fonn    (  ^^  22 

and  putting  in  the  said  places  of  it 

1  >  '^i  >  ^  >  •  •  •  •  >  ^-1 

we  thus  learn  that  the  resulting  determinant  is  equal  to 

(K^-i  1  K^.  2  >  •  •  •  >  M  ^  >  ^1  >  •  •  •  »  ^-1) 
and  therefore  is  equal  to  Xn-r     ^^  other  Avords  we  have 


(XI) 

.J 


X»»-i~ 


a 
-1 


-be 

a        -be 
-1        a 


^-2 


a 
-1 


1 


(XII) 


This  determinant,  however,  may  be  developed  in  another  way,  viz., 
in  terms  of  the  elements  of  the  first  row  and  their  respective  co- 
factors  ;  and  doing  this  we  obtain 

— a  recurrence-formula  which  readily  gives 
Xn-i  =  na-i  -  {n-\)Cn^^„a^-^bc  +  («  -  2)C,.3, ^ a^Wc^  -  . . .  (XIV) 
In  illustration  let  us  take  the  case  where  n  «  4.     We  then  have 


the  sum  of  the  signed  primary  minors 


/  b  b  b  \ 

of  I  a  a  a  a\ 

\  c  c  c  / 


=  X8-(^  +  ^)X2  +  (^'  +  ^')Xl-(^'  +  ^), 

=  4a8  -  6abc  -  (fe  +  (j)(3a«-26c)  +  (b^  +  c^)2a  -  (6»  +  c»), 
=  4a8  -  3o2(6  +  c)  +  2a(b^-Sbc  +  c^)  -  (6  +  c)(6« - 36c  +  c«) . 


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1904-5.]      Signed  Primary  Minors  of  a  Determinant,  379 

(9)  If  it  be  desired  to  have  the  general  result  arranged 
according  to  descending  powers  of  ti,  we  have  only  got  to  sub- 
stitute in  Xn-i  -  (^  +  c)x»-2  +  (^  +  ^^)Xn-s  ~  .  ...  the  expressions 
for  Xn-i  9  X«-2 »  •  •  •  obtained  from  (XIV),  and  then  coUect  the 
coefficients  of  like  powers  of  ((.     The  theorem  thus  arrived  at  is — 

/*  *        \  . 

TTie  sum  of  the  signed  primary  minors  o/l  a  a  a  .  .  .  a  Uts 

\c   e  / 

-(n-l)a-^b  +  e} 

+  (n-2)a"-»{(i«  +  c«)-C,._i,,i<-} 

-  («  -  3)a»-*{(6»  +  c»)  -  C,_j ,  i(6  +  c)bc] 

+  (n-  i)a'-^(b*  +  r*)-  C,_, ,  ,(62  +  c')bc  +  C,_a ,  ,6V} 

-  (»  -  5)a-«{  (6»  +  «»)  -  C._, ,  i(6»  +  c»)6<;  +  C„.a ,  #  +  c)6V} 
+ (XV) 

The  cof actors  here  of  na^'^ ,  -  (w  -  1  )a^^^ ,  ...  are  related  to 
one  another  in  a  curious  way,  which  is  worth  noting  if  only  for 
use  as  a  check  in  computation.  Denoting  them  by  X ,  X^ ,  Xg ,  .  .  . 
we  have 


X»„+i  =  (6  +  c)X„^ 

X^    =(6  +  c)X^_,-(«+l)J-C,        -hn^-^r      <^^*) 

m 


-™.,„-i-  ft"*"-  j" 


the  demonstration  of  both  resting  on  the  facts 

(6'-  +  c'X6  +  c)  =  (6'+'  +  c'+')  +  6c(6'-'  +  c'-'), 
C,,,,  =  Cp_i.,  +  Cp_i,,_i . 

(10)  It  is  thus  suggested  to  examine  the  result  of  multiplying 
the  whole  expression  by  a  +  (b  +  c).  Taking  it  in  its  original 
form 

X,-i  -  {b  +  e)xn-i  +  (6*  +  c*)x»-8  -  .  •  •  • 

we  readily  see,  to  begin  with,  that  the  product  is 

«A&.-i  -  a(6  +  c)x»-2  +  a(^  +  c*)x»-»  -  •  •  •  • 

■^{b  +  c)xn-i-    (f^  +  <^))^      +(6»  +  c»)> 

-  6c(6»  +  c»)  i     "+  6c(6  +  c)/^""'       ■  ■  ■  ■ 


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380 


Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh,         [ass. 


This,   however,   if  arranged  in  parts  containing   W  +  <fi,  h^  +  c^t 
bf^  +  c^ ,  .  .  .  .  and  their  respective  cof actors,  is 

{axn-,  -  2/>cx„-2}  +  (^  +  c)  {x*-i  -  axn-2  +  f^Xn-z} 

-  {b^  +  C^){xn^^  -  axn-s  +  bcXn^^} 


Now  it  can  be  shown  that 

«X— i-26cxn-2=»»K„, 
and,  as  we  have  already  seen, 

Xn-i  -  «X«-2  +  ^<^X»-8=  ^-1 J 
we  thus  reach  the  following  interesting  result — 

The  8um  of  the  signed  primary  minors  of 

is  the  quotient  of 

nK,  +  (^^  +  c)K,.,  -  (62  +  c2)K,.2  +  (63  +  c^)K^.^ 
bya  +  b-hc, 

(11)  It  has  recently  been  proved*  that 

a  +  d  b  +  d      d        d 
c  +  d  a  +  d  b  +  d      d 
j     d      c  +  da  +  db  +  d 
d         d      c  +  d  a-k-d 


I  a  a  a  ...  a  I 

\  c  c  /, 


(XVU) 


'•+i/»**i 


j-y 

s(a^lS) 


11     1         «  +  (n+l>f 
1  a~+l    l+a+...  +  a" 
1  i8"+l  l+j3  +  ...+j8" 


where  ij  =  a  +  6  +  c  and  a,  fi  are  the  roots  of  the  equation  <»*  +  ox  + 
6  =  0.     Now,  in  the  first  place,  the  determinant  on  the  left  here  is 

/bb  X 

by  the  third  theorem  (C)  of  §  1,  the  continuant  (a  a  a  ...  a  I 

\  c  c  /" 

increased  by  d  times  the  sum  of  its  signed  primary  minors :  that 

is  to  say,  is  equal  to 

K^  +  d.U{JQ. 

In  the  second  place,  the  determinant  on  the  right  is  equal  to 

1     1         n+1 
+  d      1     a"+i     l+a+  .  .  .  +a* 
1     p^^    l+i8+.  .  .+)8* 


1 


+1 


1     )3^i 


By  Dr  F.  S.  Macaulay  in  Math.  GazeUe,  iiL  pp.  44-46. 


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1904-6.]      Signed  Primary  Minors  of  a  Determinant.  381 

It  follows,  therefore,  because  of  the  known  result 

1      a"+i 


K,=(-rv 


^n+l  _  ^n+1 


that 


1        Pn+l 


M(K„): 


(  -  )-+ic» 


s{a-IS) 


1     1  n+1  I 

1       a"+i      l  +  a+  .   .   .  +a'»  (XVIII) 

,   1     )8"+^     l+j8+  .  .  .  +^  |. 

This  curious  result  ought  to  agree  with  (XVII) :  in  other  words, 
we  ought  to  be  able  to  show  that 


.-/i 


(^^~-     11  «4-l 

1      a"+»      l+a+. 
1      i3«+»      l+j8  + 

Towards  doing  so  it  has  first  to  be  noted  that  the  determinant  on 
the  left 

1     1  n 


+  a«    '               -(62  +  c2)K,_^ 
+  )8"  .  + 


1 


a  +  a*  + 


+  a" 


1      a"+^ 
1      p^+' 


1     )^+^     /i  +  iS2+  .  .  .  +i8- 

+     11 

1      a"+*      a  +  a^+  .   .   .  +a* 
1      j3"+^    i«  +  ie2+  .   .  .  +i8" 


=  // 

1   a"+» 

+ 

=  » 

1       a" 
1      p"- 

a'^^^    a  +  a^  +  .-.+a" 

+       a"+^      a 

-1       a" 

I   1      P^ 


1    a  +  a2  +  .  .  .4-a" 
1  /i-^l3^-h...+fi^\ 


pn+i     p2 


1      p^'' 


Multiplying  this  now  by  (  -  )"'*"^c'*/(a  -  /8)  and  substituting  K^  for 
(  -  c)*(a'^^  -  jS"-^')/(a  -  j8)  we  obtain 


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382  Proceedings  of  Roi/al  Society  of  Edinburgh,         [sbss. 

«K,  +  (fe  +  c)K,.,-(62  +  c2)K,.,  +  .  .  . 

as  was  desired. 

Since  «  =  c(l  -  a)(l  -  P)  the  result  (XVIII)  may  also  be  written 
in  the  more  symmetrical  form 


M(K.)  =  , , 


(-C)- 


1      a"+'    o  +  a2+  . 

.   .  +a" 

1     /3-+'  )8  +  /S2+  .   . 

.+/3» 

1     y"+'   y  +  y*+  • 

.+/ 

(y-a)(y-P){fi-a) 

where  a,  )8,  y  are  the  roots  of  the  equation 

rx^-{c-  a)2^  +  (6  -  a)a;  -  5  =  0  ; 

and,  noting  that  the  coefficients  of  this  equation  are  the  non-unit 
elements  of  the  determinant 


I     h-a      ^b 

1     a     c     b -  a      -b 

1         c        a-r     h-a      -b 

1         .            c        a-c     b-a     . 
1         .            .            c        a -c     . 

....  1 

.     -  1  ft 

which  is  another  form  of  M(K«) ,  we  have  at  once  suggested  the 

problem  of  evaluating  the  determinant 

led 

I     b     c     d 

lab      c     d     .  ,  .  . 

I     .      a     be     .... 

1      .      .      a     6     .-.  .  . 

n 

in  terms  of  the  roots  of  the  equation 

aa^  +  bx^-\-cx  +  d  =  0. 

After  doing  this,  however,  we  should  only  have  reached  a  simple 
case  of  a  known  theorem  of  wide  generality.* 

♦  Fide  my  Text-Book  of  Determinants,  p.  173,  §  127. 


{Issued  separately  January  20,  1905.) 


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1904-6.J    Dr  Hugh  Marshall:    Crystallographical  Notes,    383 


OrystaJlographiccd  Notes. 
By  Hugh  Marshall,  D.Sc.,  F.R.S. 

(MS.  received  November  21,  1904.     Read  December  6,  1904.) 

I.  Axes  of  Compound  Symmetry  of  the  Second  Order. 

In  recent  years,  since  the  more  or  less  general  adoption  of  the 
systematic  classification  of  crystals  under  the  thirty-two  possible 
types  of  symmetry,  it  has  become  usual  to  dispense  with  the 
*  centre  of  symmetry  *  as  one  of  the  elements  of  crystal  symmetry, 
and  to  adopt  in  its  place  the  '  axis  of  compound  symmetry  of  the 
second  order.'  The  derivation  of  symmetrical  directions  from  any 
given  one  by  means  of  a  compound  axis  of  order  n  involves  not 

.A 


Fig.  1. 

merely  rotation  through  the  angle  2irJ7i  about  that  axis,  but  also 
reflection  in  the  plane  at  right  angles  to  the  axis.  If  the  axis  A 
(fig.  1)  is  of  second  order,  then  B,  by  rotation  about  A  through  tt, 
would  give  B',  but  this  by  reflection  in  the  normal  plane  P  gives 
B",  and  the  latter  (not  B')  is  therefore  symmetrical  to  B  with 
reference  to  the  compound  axis  A.  But  B'  is  evidently  parallel 
to  B,  and  oppositely  directed,  so  that  it  follows  that  in  crystals 
possessing  an  axis  of  compound  symmetry  of  the  second  order  (or 


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384  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edwhurgh,  \\ 

of  order  n  such  that  n  is  divisihle  by  2  but  not  by  4),  opposite 
directions  are  equivalent  to  one  another.  So  far  as  exteroal  shape 
is  concerned,  this  involves,  essentiaUy,  the  occurrence  of  parallel 
faces  on  every  form.  These  are  the  characters  of  centre- 
symmetrical  bodies,  however,  so  that  at  first  sight  it  appears  as  if 
the  symmetry  might  be  referred  indifferently  either  to  the  com- 
pound axis  or  to  the  centre.  There  is,  unfortunately,  one  grave 
objection  to  the  former  method  which  seems  to  be  generally  over- 
looked. In  all  other  cases  an  axis  of  symmetry  is  some  perfectly 
definite  direction  in  the  crystal,  and  the  number  of  axes  is  never 
large — not  exceeding  six  of  any  one  order,  even  in  the  most 
symmetrical  classes.  An  axis  of  compouwi  symmetry  of  the 
second  *  order,  however,  is  not  a  definite  direction  in  the  crystal, 
and  every  centro-symmetrical  crystal  possesses  not  one  such  axis, 
but  an  infinitude  of  them,  because  any  direction  whatsoever  may 
be  chosen  as  the  axis  without  affecting  the  final  result.  It  is 
therefore  much  better  to  avoid  this  lack  of  definitiveness  in  the 
expression  *  axis  of  symmetry '  by  giving  up  the  use  of  the  *  axis 
of  compound  symmetry  of  the  second  order,*  and  restoring  the 
*  centre  of  symmetry '  to  its  former  position. 

II.  The  Classification  of  Trigonal  and  Hexagonal  Crystals. 

For  teaching  and  ordinary  crystallographical  purposes,  the 
classification  of  crystals  is  largely  a  matter  of  practical  convenience  ; 
questions  of  structure  or  arrangement  of  crystal  molecules  may  be 
entirely  overlooked  in  this  connection.  Bearing  this  in  mind,  it 
is  a  matter  of  some  importance  that  the  crystal  systems  which 
resemble  one  another  in  possessing  one  principal  axis  of  symmetry 
(the  trigonal,  tetragonal,  and  hexagonal  systems)  should  be  so 
arranged  as  to  accentuate  their  similarities ;  by  doing  so  it  becomes, 
for  students  beginning  the  subject,  a  much  easier  matter  to 
appreciate  and  remember  the  various  classes  (nineteen  out  of 
the  total  of  thirty-two)  included  in  these  three  systems. 

The  tetragonal  system  is  defined  quite  sharply,  and  the  seven 
classes  belonging  to  it  present  no  characters  which  would  lead  to 

*  This  does  not  apply  to  compound  axes  of  liigher  order,  because  an  axis  cf 
compound  symmetry  of  order  n  is  necessarily  an  axis  of  ordinary  symmetry  of 
order  n/2. 


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1904-5.]    Dr  Hugh  Marshall:   Crystallographical  Notes,    385 

the  inclusion  of  them  in  any  other  group.  We  may  therefore  take 
the  tetragonal  system  as  a  standard,  and  compare  the  trigonal  and 
the  hexagonal  with  it.  The  seven  tetragonal  classes  and  their 
characteristic  symmetry  are  as  follows : — 

1.  Bi-sphenoidcd  doss, — One  axis  of  compound  tetragonal 
symmetry.  (Representatives  of  this  class  are  not  actually  known, 
however.) 

2.  Pyramidal  class. — One  axis  of  tetragonal  symmetry. 

3.  Trapezohedrdl  doss. — One  axis  of  tetragonal  symmetry ;  two 
pairs  of  lateral  axes  of  digonal  symmetry. 

4.  Scalenohedrdl  doss. —  One  axis  of  compound  tetragonal 
symmetry ;  one  pair  of  lateral  axes  of  digonal  symmetry ;  one  pair 
of  planes  of  symmetry  intersecting  each  other,  normally,  along  the 
principal  axis. 

5.  Di-tetragonal  pyramidal  doss. — One  axis  of  tetragonal 
symmetry;  two  pairs  of  planes  of  symmetry  intersecting,  all  at 
equal  angles,  along  the  axis  of  symmetry. 

6.  TdragoTwU  U-pyramiddl  dass. — One  axis  of  tetragonal 
symmetry ;  one  plane  of  symmetry  normal  to  the  axis. 

7.  LHrtetragonal  bupyramiddl  dass. — One  axis  of  tetragonal 
symmetry ;  two  pairs  of  lateral  axes  of  digonal  symmetry,  all 
equally  inclined  to  one  another ;  one  principal  plane  of  symmetry 
and  two  pairs  of  planes  of  symmetry,  each  plane  normal  to  an  axis 
of  symmetry. 

At  first  sight  it  might  be  expected  that,  corresponding  to  these, 
there  would  be  possible  seven  classes  in  each  of  the  other  two 
systems,  the  only  differences  being  those  due  to  the  lower  or  higher 
order  of  the  principal  axis  of  symmetry.  So  far  as  regards  the 
classes  in  which  the  axis  is  not  one  of  compound  symmetry,  this 
is  the  case ;  but  not  so  when  the  symmetry  is  compound.  Axes 
of  compound  symmetry  of  even  order  are  possible,  but  axes  of  com- 
pound symmetry  of  odd  order  are  not  possible  merely  as  such, 
therefore  two  classes  must  be  lacking  in  the  trigonal  system.  This 
is  easily  seen  by  a  reference  to  the  usual  symmetry  diagrams  re- 
presenting projections  on  a  plane  at  right  angles  to  the  principal 
axis  of  symmetry. 

Fig.  2  represents  the  case  in  which  the  only  symmetry  assumed 
is  that  of  a  trigonal  axis  of  compound  symmetry.     An  upper  face, 

PROC.  ROY.  SOC.  BDIN. — VOL.  XXV.  25 


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386  Proceedings  of  Roycd  Society  of  Edivhurgh.         [sbss. 

1,   on  rotation  through  -—  and  reflection  in  the  normal  plane, 
o 

would  give  a  lower  face,  2 ;  and  by  repeating  these  operations  an 

upper  face,  3,  would  result.     Repeating  the  rotation  once  more 

would  bring  the  face  back  to  its  original  position,  but  the  ensuing 

reflection  would  give  a  new  face,  immediately  below  the  first.    It 

is  therefore  evident  that  in  order  to  return  to  the  original  position, 

by  repeating  the  operations  characteristic  of  the  symmetry,  two 

complete  revolutions  are  necessary,  and  this  produces  six  faces,  as 

shown  in  fig.  3 — three  above  and  three  below.     The  diagram  now 


/         N 
/  N 


'      X3    ^  /  \ 


i A- 


01   \ 


^<s.._ 


>' 


Fig.  2.  Fio.  8. 

exhibits  the  higher  symmetry  of  an  ordinary  trigonal  axis  combined 
Avith  a  plane  of  symmetry  at  right  angles  to  it ;  but  this  is  the 
symmetry  of  the  trigonal  bi-pyramidal  class  which  corresponds  to 
the  tetragonal  bi-pyramidal  class.  There  can,  therefore,  be  no  tri- 
gonal class  corresponding  to  the  tetragonal  bi-sphenoidal  class. 

Similarly,  there  can  be  no  trigonal  class  corresponding  to  the 
di-tetragonal  scalenohedral  class,  as  a  trigonal  axis  of  compoimd 
symmetry  combined  with  vertical  planes  of  symmetry  leads  neces- 
sarily to  the  symmetry  of  the  di-trigonal  bi-pyramidal  class.  Each 
of  these  two  classes — the  trigonal  bi-pyramidal  and  the  di-trigonal 
bi-pyramidal — therefore  represents,  in  a  sense,  two  classes  of  the 
tetragonal  system.  It  is  noteworthy  that  not  a  single  substance  is 
known  to  crystallise  in  either  of  them ;  they  are  only  *  theoretically . 
possible.' 

As  hexagonal  axes  of  compound  symmetry  are  possible,  there  are 
the  full  number  of  seven  classes  possible  in  the  hexagonal  system. 
The  classes  corresponding  to  the  tetragonal  bi-sphenoidal  and 
scalenohedral  are  the  rhombohedral  class  and  the  hexcujonal  scaleno- 
hedral.     Representatives  of   both  are   known,  especially  of  the 


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1904-5.]     Dr  Hugh  Marshall:   Crj/stallographical  Notes.    387 

latter;  they  are  the  classes  of  dioptase  and  calcite  respectively. 
Instead  of  being  classed  in  the  hexagonal  system,  however,  they 
are  generally  placed  in  the  trigonal  system,  the  scalenohedral  one 
being  known  as  the  di-trigonal  scalenohedral  class.  The  principal 
axis  of  symmetry  is,  of  course,  a  simple  trigonal  axis,  as  well  as 
one  of  hexagonal  compound  symmetry,  but  that  is  no  sufficient 
reason  for  departing  from  the  strictly  systematic  method  of  treat* 
ment.  The  result  of  doing  so  is  to  complicate  matters  for  the 
student  quite  unnecessarily. 

For  the  purpose  of  introducing  the  student  to  the  various  crystal 
classes,  it  would  therefore  appear  to  be  best,  after  treating  of  the 
triclinic,  the  monoclinic,  and  the  rhombic  systems,  to  take  up  the 
tetragonal  system,  and,  after  this  has  been  gone  over,  to  proceed  to 
the  hexagonal  and,  lastly,  the  trigonal  systems  :  the  close  analogies, 
allowing  for  the  exceptions  in  the  trigonal  system  as  referred  to 
above,  render  the  study  of  the  latter  systems  quite  simple. 

The  various  classes  might  then  be  tabulated  as  follows,  the  sym- 
metry of  the  different  systems  being  expressed  in  general  terms : — 


I 


Systems  and  Classes. 


Symmetry. 


n=4 
Tetragonal. 


7t-gonal  axis  of  com-  \ 
pound  symmetry         / 

n-gonal  axis 

n-gonal  axis ;  n  lateral  \ 
axes  (digonal)  ) 

n-gonal   axis    of  com- ' 
pound  symmetry ;  n/2 
planes  intersecting  in 
axis  ;  n/2  lateral  axes 
(digonal) 

n-gonal  axis;  n  planes \ 
intersecting  in  axis     / 

n-gonal  axis ;  one  plane  \ 
normal  to  axis  / 

n-gonal  axis ;  n  lateral  \ 
axes  (digonal) ;  plane  j- 
normal  to  each  axis     j 


Bi-sphenoidal 

Pyramidal 

Trapezohedral 

Scalenohedral 


Di-tetragonal 
pyramidal 

Bi-pyramidal 

i>i- tetragonal 
bi-pyramidal 


?t=6 
Hexagonal. 


Rhombohedral 

Pyramidal 

Trapezohedral 

Scalenohedral 


2>t-hexa^onal 
pyramidal 

Bi-pyramidal 

2>i-hexagonal 
bi-pyramidal 


n  =  3 
Trigonal. 


Pyramidal 
Trapezohedral 


Dt-trigonal 
pyramidal 

Bi-pyramidal 

Z>i-trigonal 
bi-pyramidal 


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388  Proceedings  of  Hoycd  Society  of  Edinburgh,  [i 

When  considered  in  this  way  the  trigonal  and  hexagonal 
systems  are  referred  to  the  Bravais  axes,  using  the  appropriate 
symbols.  It  is  important,  however,  that  students  should  be  made 
acquainted  with  the  mode  of  referring  certain  crystals  to  rhombo- 
hedral  axes,  with  Miller's  original  symbols ;  therefore  those  classes 
for  which  such  axes  can  be  adopted  should  subsequently  be 
brought  together  into  a  rhombohedral  system  by  themselves.  The 
classes  to  which  this  is  applicable  are  those,  belonging  to  the  tri- 
gonal and  hexagonal  systems,  which  do  not  possess  elements  of 
symmetry  higher  than  those  pertaining  to  a  (geometrical)  rhombo- 
hedron.  Consequently,  all  classes  possessing  a  simple  hexagonal 
axis,  and  also  those  which  possess  a  principal  plane  of  symmetry, 
are  excluded  from  the  rhombohedral  system,  which  therefore 
includes — 

The  trigonal  pyramidal  class 
„         „        trapezohedral  class 
„     di-trigonal  pyramidal  class 
„     hexagonal  rhombohedral  class 
^  „         scalenohedral  class 

The  above  list  contains  all  the  represented  classes  which  are 
usually  included  in  the  trigonal  system,  and  doubtless  this  is  the 
principal  reason  why  two  classes  which  are,  strictly  speaking,  hexa- 
gonal, are  generally  placed  in  the  trigonal  system.  It  appears  to 
me,  however,  that  considerable  advantage  is  obtained  by  first 
deducing  the  trigonal  and  hexagonal  classes  in  a  strictly  systematic 
manner,  and,  after  the  student  has  become  acquainted  with  them, 
introducing  the  use  of  rhombohedral  axes  as  an  alternative  method 
of  dealing  with  a  certain  group,  represented  in  both  of  the  preced- 
ing systems,  before  passing  on  to  the  cubic  system. 


{Issued  separately  February  1,  1905.) 


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1904-5.]      SimuUane(ms  Removal  of  Thymvs  and  Spleen.     389 


The  Effect  of  Simultaneoiis  Bemovcil  of  Thymus  and 
Spleen  in  young  Guinea-pigs.  By  D.  Noel  Paton  and 
Alexander  GoodalL  {From  tlie  Laboratory  of  the  Royal 
College  of  Physicians^  Edinburgh.) 

(Read  December  5,  1904.) 

We  have  already  shown  that  removal  of  the  spleen  (1)  or  of  the 
thjrmus  (2)  has  very  little  effect  on  the  animal  economy.  Since 
the  spleen  and  thymus  together  comprise  the  largest  amount  of 
lymphoid  tissue  in  the  body  of  young  animals,  it  would  appear  not 
improbable  that  although  removal  of  either  of  these  organs  causes 
no  marked  disturbance,  their  simultaneous  extirpation  might  be 
expected  to  give  rise  to  some  more  manifest  change.  Friedleben 
(3)  states  that,  while  in  his  series  of  experiments  no  dog  died  of 
removal  of  the  thymus,  and  that  the  removal  of  the  spleen  in 
young  dogs  does  not  influence  the  course  of  life,  the  simultaneous 
removal  of  the  thymus  and  spleen  causes  a  marked  deterioration 
of  blood  formation,  and  leads  to  death. 

Since  his  experiments  were  made  without  aseptic  precautions, 
and  since  his  results  may  therefore  have  been  due  to  sepsis,  it 
appeared  desirable  to  repeat  these  observations  on  young  guinea- 
pigs,  in  which  animals  removal  of  the  thymus  and  of  the  spleen 
separately  has  been  found  by  us  to  cause  no  disturbance  of 
importance. 

In  the  following  series  of  observations  D.  Noel  Paton  is 
responsible  for  the  operations,  which  were  performed  under  full 
anaesthesia.  The  animals  invariably  recovered  rapidly.  There 
was  never  suppuration,  or  any  evident  discomfort  to  the  animal. 

The  observations  on  the  blood  were  made  by  A.  Goodall. 

Experiment  I. — On  9th  April  two  female  guinea-pigs  were 
brought  under  observation.     A.  weighed  200  grms  and  B.  160  grms. 

A.  had  thymus  and  spleen  removed : — thymus  '3  grm.,  spleen 
•18  grm. 


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390  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edivburgh.  [i 

On  25th  April  A.  weighed  330  grms.  and  B.  230  grms.  A.  had 
11,200  and  B.  7800  leucocytes  per  c.cm.  Both  were  killed  on 
5th  October.  A.  weighed  870  grms.  The  thymus  was  completely 
gone.  A  small  piece  of  splenic  tissue  weighing  '67  grm,  was 
found.     B.  weighed  550  grms.     Thymus  *55  grm.,  spleen  '93. 

Experiment  IL — A  guinea-pig  weighing  260  grms.  had  thymus 
(•32  grm.)  and  spleen  ('18  grm.)  removed  on  25th  ApriL  On  2nd 
May  it  weighed  290  grms.  and  had  6800  leucocytes.  On  12th 
May  it  had  6600  leucocytes.  On  2nd  June  it  weighed  410 
grms.  and  had  13,000  leucocytes.  It  became  pregnant,  and  aborted 
on  26th  July,  giving  birth  to  three  young,  weighing  in  all  123  grms. 
It  was  killed  the  same  day.  The  thymus  was  completely  removed, 
while  a  small  scrap  of  spleen  was  found. 

Experiment  III, — Tavo  female  guinea-pigs  had  thymus  and 
spleen  removed  on  2nd  May. 

A.  weighed  220  grms.       .     Thymus  -275      Spleen  '345 

B.  „        280     „  .  „        -280  „      -405 
On  12th  May  A.  =  280  with  1200  leucocytes. 

B.  =  310     „    8800 
26th         A.  =  355     „    5000 

„  B.  =  385     „    7200        „ 

2nd  June  A.  =  370 
„       B.-400 
Both  were  killed  on  6th  June.     Removal  of  thymus  and  spleen 
was  complete. 

The  number  of  leucocytes  compared  with  that  of  normal  animals 
of  the  same  age  showed  the  same  slight  diminution  that  we  have 
noticed  after  removal  of  the  thymus  alone,  but,  as  in  the  case  of 
removal  of  thymus  only,  this  leucopenia  does  not  persist  after  the 
animal  has  attained  the  age  of  three  months. 

DifTerential  counts  of  the  leucocytes  showed  no  departure  from 
physiological  limits. 

We  conclude  that  simultaneous  removal  of  the  thymus  and  spleen 
in  the  young  guinea-pig  in  no  way  interferes  with  nutrition,  blood 
formation,  growth  and  development  of  the  animal. 


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.  l»04-5.]     SimvManeous  Removed  of  Thy  mm  and  Spleen,      391 

Refebbnces. 

(1)  Noel  Paton  and  GtOODall,  Jour,  ofPhys,,  xxix.,  1903,  p.  41 1. 

(2)  „  „  „  xxxi.,  1904,  p.  49. 

(3)  Fribdlbbbn,  Die  Physiologic  der  Thymusdriise^  1858. 


{Issued  separately  February  1,  1906.) 


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392  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh.        [& 


Networks  of  the  Plane  in  Absolute  Qeometry.  By 
Dunoan  M.  Y.  Sommerville,  M.A.,  B.Sc,  University  of 
St  Andrews.     Communicated  by  Professor  P.  R.  Scott  Lang. 

(Read  December  19,  1904.) 

(Ahgtrad.) 

The  problem  to  divide  the  plane,  without  overlapping,  into  a 
network  of  regular  polygons  with  the  same  length  of  side,  has  been 
completely  worked  out  for  the  three  geometries  for  the  case  in 
which  the  polygons  are  all  of  the  same  kind.  The  resulting  net- 
works are  called  regular. 

On  the  Elliptic  plane  there  are  five  regular  networks.  These 
correspond  to  the  five  regular  polyhedra  in  ordinary  space.  On 
the  Euclidean  plane  there  are  three,  consisting  respectively  of 
triangles,  squares,  and  hexagons.  On  the  Hyperbolic  plane  there 
exist  an  infinite  number. 

To  investigate  the  extension  of  this  problem  to  the  case  where 
the  polygons  are  of  different  kinds,  i.e.  to  find  the  semi-regular 
networks,  I  consider  first  how  the  space  about  a  point  can  be 
exactly  filled  with  regular  polygons.  I  take  the  three  geometries 
separately. 

I.  The  Euclidean  Plane. — The  angle  of  a  regular  polygon  is 
definite.  If  there  are  p^  n^-gons,  p^  n^-gons,  etc.  at  a  point,  the 
condition  that  the  sum  of  the  angles  at  the  point  is  360*  leads  to 
an  indeterminate  equation  which  may  be  denoted  by  A  =  0,  A  being 
an  integral  function  of  the  n*s  and  p's.  The  solutions  of  this 
equation  in  integers  give  the  possible  combinations  of  polygons.  Of 
these  there  are  17.  I  call  them  the  "kinds  of  angles."  They  are 
divided  into  three  Classes  according  to  the  number  of  kinds  of 
polygons  involved.  The  development  of  some  of  the  kinds  of 
angles  leads  to  impossible  combinations  of  polygons.  Rejecting 
these,  there  are  left  11,  involving  triangles  (T),  squares  (S), 
hexagons  (H),  octagons  (O),  and  dodecagons  (D).  They  may  be 
denoted  as  follows  : — 


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1904-5.]     Networks  of  the  Plane  in  Absolute  Geometry.  393 

Class  A.  1.  Te.     2.  S^.     3.  H3. 

Class  B.  4.  TgSg.     5.  T^Hj.    6.  T,H.    7.  TDg.    8.  SOg.     9* 

Class  C.  10.  TSjH.     11.  TgSD.     12.  SHD. 

Out  of  these  all  the  semi-regtdar  networks  must  be  built  up.  I 
distinguish  types  of  networks  according  to  the  kinds  of  angles  of 
which  they  are  composed.  If  there  is  only  one  kind  of  angle  the 
type  is  called  simple^  otherwise  it  is  composite.  The  types  are 
classified  into  Groups  according  to  the  kinds  of  polygons  which  are 
inyolTcd,  and  the  groups  into  Classes  according  to  the  number  of 
kinds  of  polygons.  There  are  four  classes.  Class  A.  consists  of 
the  regular  networks. 

The  simple  types  are  first  considered.  There  are  four  unique 
types,  T4H,  TDj,  SO^,  and  SHD.  T3S2  admits  of  an  infinite 
number  of  varieties  of  the  simple  type.  In  TjH^  two  distinct 
varieties  can  be  recognised,  an  infinite  number  of  varieties  being 
obtained  as  mixtures  of  the  two.  With  TSgH  there  are  three 
distinct  varieties  with  an  infinite  number  of  mixtures.  TgSD 
does  not  admit  of  a  simple  type,  nor,  of  course,  does  Class  D. 

The  composite  types  in  general  admit  of  infinite  variation.  In 
any  group  a  composite  type  corresponds  to  a  possible  combination 
of  the  kinds  of  angles  contained  in  the  group.  Thus  in  the  group 
of  triangles  and  squares  there  are  the  three  angles  1,  2,  4,  and 
the  composite  types  1,  4;  2,  4;  1,  2,  4;  the  combination  1,  2 
being  impossible.  The  method  of  investigating  these  is  chiefly 
experimental,  and  consists  in  testing  the  various  combinations. 
It  is  easily  seen,  however,  that  certain  combinations  are  impos- 
sible. For  example,  H3  must  be  accompanied  by  T^H^  in  order 
that  the  gap  of  120"*  may  be  filled  up.  The  following  are  the 
numbers  of  composite  types  in  the  various  groups : 
B.  I.  (T,  S)  3 ;  IL  (T,  H)  8.  C.  I.  (T,  S,  H)  47  ;  II.  (T,  S,  D)  10. 
D.  (T,S,H,D)169  +  .t 

II.  The  Elliptic  Plank. — Here  we  get  a  relation  of  the  form 
A>0,  and  by  giving  positive  integral  values  to  A  an  infinite 
nimiber  of  kinds  of  angles  are  found.  Only  a  few  of  these, 
however,  can  be  developed.     For  example,  if  there  are  at  a  point 

*  No.  9  is  2  pentagons  and  1  decagon,  bat  this  is  not  a  developable  angle, 
t  I  have  not  exhausted  all  the  composite  types  in  this  class.      There 
cannot  be  more  than  222. 


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394  Proceedings  of  Rayed  Society  of  Hdinbicrgh.         [i 

an  nj-gon,  an  n^'gon,  and  an  »3-gon,  nj,  n^  and  n^  must  all  be  even, 
for  the  nj-gon  must  be  surrounded  alternately  with  rig-gons  and 
nj-gons.  With  the  angles  which  remain  there  are  thirteen  simple 
t3rpe8,  two  with  two  varieties  each  and  one  with  five,  and  two 
infinite  series  of  simple  types,  one  corresponding  to  right  prisms 
on  a  regular  polygonal  base,  the  other  with  triangles  instead  of 
quadrilaterals. 

Of  composite  types  it  is  probable  that  none  exist,  if  we  make 
the  condition  that  the  angle  of  a  regular  polygon  must  be  less 
than  180**.  When  a  polygon  occurs  in  a  particular  combination 
its  angle  is  thereby  determined,  and  if  it  occurs  in  another  com- 
bination its  angle  must  be  the  same,  which  is  not  in  general  the 
case. 

III.  Thb  Htperbolic  Plane. — The  number  of  simple  types 
here  is  infinite.  For  example,  one  n-gon  and  two  277»-gon8  at  a 
point  determine  a  simple  hyperbolic  network  for  all  values  of  n 
and  m  for  which  the  network  is  neither  Euclidean  nor  Elliptic. 

As  regards  the  composite  types,  the  same  considerations  hold 
here  as  in  the  case  of  the  spherical  networks. 


{Issued  separately  February  1,  1905.) 


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1904-5.]      Salmon  in  transUum  fr(ym  Srnx)lt  to  Gril^.  395 


A  Specimen  of  the  Salmon  in  transition  from  the  Smolt 
to  the  Ghrilse  Stage.  By  W.  L.  Calderwood.  (With 
Two  Plates.) 

(Read  December  19, 1904.) 

In  October  of  this  year  (1904)  there  came  into  my  hands  a  very 
interesting  specimen  of  a  young  salmon.  In  round  terms,  the  fish 
is  1  pound  in  weight  and  nearly  14  inches  long. 

Up  to  the  present  time  very  little  is  known  of  the  life  history 
of  the  salmon  during  the  transition  from  the  stage  of  the  smolt 
leaving  the  river,  a  fish  of  about  3  ounces,  and  that  of  the  grilse 
returning  to  the  river  for  the  first  time,  a  fish  of  3,  6,  or  9 
pounds  in  weight. 

A  great  deal  of  speculation  has  arisen  as  to  the  length  of  time 
occupied  in  this  change,  and  most  of  the  earlier  writers  have 
upheld  the  view  that  three  or  four  months  is  sufficient,  or,  in  other 
words,  that  the  smolt  of  May  or  June  is  the  grilse  which  appears 
in  the  summer  of  the  same  year.  This  view  was  mainly  based,  I 
beh'eve,  upon  results  which  it  was  held  had  been  obtained  by  mark- 
ing the  fish  by  the  mutilation  or  removal  of  the  adipose  fin.  But 
since  the  adipose  fin  grows  again  to  a  greater  or  less  extent,  a  con- 
siderable amount  of  uncertainty  in  recognising  the  recaptures  was 
inevitable;  and  I  may  add  that  recent  observations  made  in 
Devonshire  by  the  instructions  of  the  Duke  of  Bedford,  in  which 
the  marking  was  carried  on  in  precisely  the  same  manner,  have 
been  held  to  show  that  the  grilse  do  not  come  back  the  same 
season,  or  within  four  months  or  so  of  the  seaward  smolt  migration. 
All  the  recaptured  grilse  obtained  in  the  Tavy  were  caught  in 
the  succeeding  season.  If  any  still  remained  in  the  sea  and 
ascended  during  the  second  season  succeeding,  they  would  probably 
be  unrecognisable.  Further,  the  few  s»olts  which  have  been 
recaptured  after  being  marked  by  the  attachment  of  a  foreign 
body  of  some  sort — I  refer  to  those  of  the  Early  Tweed  Experi- 
ments— have  been  got  as  grilse  in  the  summer  of  the  year  after 
that  in  which  they  were  marked. 


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396  Proceedings  of  Boyal  Society  of  Edinburgh.  [ssss. 

The  specimen  (PL  I.)  now  exhibited  throws  some  light  upon  the 
question  of  rate  of  growth  at  the  period  between  smolt  and  grilse. 
It  is  an  Irish  fish,  and  was  taken  on  a  small  fly  on  25th  August 
of  this  year  (1904).  It  was  caught  by  Mr  W.  N.  Milne  when 
angling  a  quarter  of  a  mile  above  tide  reach  iu  the  river  Cralway. 
It  was  therefore  taken  at  the  season  when  grilse  proper  are 
commonly  found  to  be  several  pounds  in  weight,  and  when,  if  the 
old  observers  were  correct,  the  fish  could  not  have  weighed,  as  it 
does,  only  \b\  ounces.  It  is  more  than  a  smolt,  is  evidently  a 
quite  young  fish,  and  cannot  fairly  be  called  a  grilse.  It  has 
attained,  I  believe,  about  a  third  of  the  growth  of  the  grilse,  as 
this  stage  is  commonly  recognised,  and  requires  another  year  of 
sea  feeding  to  accomplish  the  transition.  I  am  not  aware  of  any 
similar  specimen  existing  in  this  country,  if  we  except  a  few  that 
have  been  artificially  reared,  and,  as  smolts,  transferred  to  salt 
water  aquaria  or  sea  ponds.  In  this  way  Dahl  in  Norway  has 
reared  examples  up  to  31*5  cm. ;  and  recently  in  Scotland  a 
sea  pond  at  the  mouth  of  the  Spey,  belonging  to  the  Duke  of 
Richmond  and  Gordon,  has  produced  rather  larger  examples.  I 
am  able  to  show  one  of  these,  which  is  33  cm.,  or  almost  the 
size  of  the  Galway  fish  (PI.  II.). 

I  have  heard  of  two  occasions  on  which  fish  approaching  the 
stage  of  the  Galway  fish  have,  in  the  wild  state,  been  caught  in 
Scotland.  In  other  cases  which  have  been  brought  to  my  notice 
the  identification  is  uncertain.  A  specimen  weighing  \  pound  was, 
Mr  S.  Gurney  Buxton  informs  me,  caught  by  him  when  spinning 
%vith  natural  sand  eel  in  the  Kyle  of  Tongue  in  1886 ;  and  two 
fish,  each  weighing  \  pound,  were  reported  to  me  by  the  late  Mr 
Anderson,  salmon  tacksman  in  the  Forth  district,  as  having  been 
taken  by  his  father  in  1863,  he  himself  being  present,  in  the  Dundas 
net  which  used  to  be  fished  between  Hopetoun  and  Queensferry. 
The  fish  were  not  preserved,  or,  so  far  as  I  can  find,  identified 
scientifically,  but  the  reports  are,  I  consider,  worthy  of  record,  my 
informants  being  in  e^h  case  men  with  long  experience  in  salmon 
fishing. 

Dahl,  in  his  valuable  report  of  inquiries  into  the  early  stages  of 
the  sea  trout  and  salmon,^  refers  to  three  yoxmg  salmon  which 
*  CErret  og  Unglaks^  Christiania,  1902. 


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1904-6.]      Salmon  in  transition  f row  Smolt  to  Grilse.  397 

were  sent  to  him  by  mackerel  fishers  near  Oks^.  Those  measured 
43,  36,  and  17*5  cm.  Two  other  specimens  he  found  in  the 
Zoological  Collection  of  Bergen  University,  which,  though  unde- 
scribed,  are  believed  by  Professor  Collett  to  have  been  found 
amongst  young  mackerel  in  the  Christiania  fish  market.  They 
measure  23*5  and  28  cm. 

Dahl's  special  netting  in  Norwegian  fjords  and  some  special 
netting  which  I  have  carried  on  in  Scotland  have  as  yet  produced 
only  negative  results.  Sea  trout  can  easily  be  obtained  in  all 
stages  at  and  near  the  mouths  of  rivers,  but  it  is  clear  that  on 
entering  salt  water  the  salmon  smolt  separates  himself  from  the 
sea  trout,  and  has  a  habitat  in  the  sea  which  has  not  yet  been 
discovered. 

The  particulars  of  measurement,  etc.  respecting  the  Qalway 
fish  are  given  below.  They  are  those  most  approved  by  the 
British  Museum  authorities  for  the  purpose  of  identifying  the 
species  of  salmonidsB.  I  may  add  that  I  have  already  submitted 
the  specimen  to  Mr  Boulenger  in  London,  and  that  he  and  his 
colleague  Mr  C.  T.  Regan,  who  made  a  separate  identification, 
agree  that  the  fish  is  a  salmon. 

The  measurements  are  given  in  millimetres. 

1.  Sex, 6 

2.  Length  to  centre  of  caudal  fin,     ....  850 

3.  Weight 16i  ounces 

4.  Length  of  head  from  end  of  snout  to  posterior 

border  of  gill  cover, 77 

5.  Length  of  head  to  anterior  border  of  eye,     .        .  21 

6.  Diameter  of  eye, 11 

7.  Length  of  month  from  end  of  snout  to  posterior 

border  of  maxillary  bone,  .        .        .        .85 

8.  Length    of   caudal    peduncle,    measured    in    a 

straight  line  from  base  of  last  ray  of  anal  fin  to 
base  of  lowermost  ray  of  caudal  fin,  .        .47 

9.  Least  depth  of  caudal  peduncle,  .        .        .29 

10.  Length  of  longest  ray  of  anal  fin,         .        .        .89 

11.  Shape  of  posterior  border  of  tail,  .        .        ,     Fully  notched 

12.  Number    of    scales,    cousting    from    poflterior 

extremity  of  base  of  adipose  fin  downwards  and 
forwards  to  lateral  line, 12 

13.  Number  of  gill-iakers,         ....     7  +  6  (gills  damaged) 

14.  Presence  or  absence  of  black  spots  below   the 

lateral  line  in  the  region  of  the  '  shoulder  '        .     Present 

In  general  appearance  (PI.  I.)  the  fish  has  to  my  eye  certain 


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398  Proceedings  of  Boyal  Society  of  Edinburgh,  \i 

sea  trout  characteristics.  Owing  to  the  more  or  less  familiar 
appearance  of  artificially  reared  specimens,  a  series  of  which  I 
show  in  PI.  II.,  one  is  prepared  for  the  presence  of  spots 
below  the  lateral  line  (although  in  the  largest  specimen  which  I 
show,  and  which  has  been  twelve  months  in  a  sea  water  pond, 
spots  are  less  conspicuous),  but  the  rather  noticeable  breadth  of 
the  caudal  peduncle  in  the  Galway  specimen  is  certainly  not 
in  keeping  with  the  shapely  specimens  which  can  be  reared 
artificially,  as  it  is  opposed  to  the  characteristics  of  young  salmon, 
as  insisted  upon  and  figured  by  Dahl  in  Norway. 

The  measurement  of  the  caudal  peduncle  is  contained  in  the 
length  of  the  fish  only  llf  times. 

In  a  Fochabers  smolt  retained  in  fresh  water  till  three  years  old 
similar  measurements  give  13*6  times.  In  the  Fochabers  smolt 
placed  for  a  year  in  a  sea  pond  the  measurements  give  15 '2 
times. 

In  a  small  Beauly  grilse  of  1  lb.  15^  oz.  similar  measurements 
give  15  times. 

In  a  small  Tay  grilse  of  2  lbs.  ^  oz.  the  measurements  give 
15*9  times. 

These  two  grilse  are  exceptionally  small,  and  have  been  pre- 
served by  me  on  this  account.  Without  any  doubt  the  caudal 
peduncle  is  broad,  but  on  inquiry  I  am  informed  by  Mr  Milne,  w^ho 
has  had  a  wide  professional  experience  as  a  salmon  fisher  both  in 
Scotland  and  Ireland,  that  the  fish  of  the  Galway  river  "are 
thicker  above  the  tail  than  the  East  of  Scotland  grilse.  They  are 
rougher  altogether,  fins  and  tail  larger  in  proportion."  In  spite, 
however,  of  this  unusual  depth  of  caudal  peduncle,  the  number  of 
scales,  counted  forwards  and  downwards  from  the  posterior  margin 
of  the  adipose  fin  to  the  lateral  line,  is  on  each  side  12.  This,  in 
my  view,  is  by  far  the  most  reliable  test  by  which  to  distinguish 
between  salmon  and  sea  trout,  the  former  having  almost  invariably 
11  or  12,  the  latter  having  almost  invariably  14  or  15  scales  in 
the  line  indicated.  The  present  specimen,  therefore,  in  spite  of 
its  sea-trout-like  caudal  peduncle,  has  the  salmon  number  in  the 
matter  of  scales.  Mr  Milne  reports  that  on  capture  the  scales 
came  off  very  freely.  This  accounts  for  the  rather  patchy  appear- 
ance of  the  side  in  the  photograph  of  the  fish  which  accompanies 


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1904-5.]      Salrnon  in  transition  fro77i  SnioU  to  Grilse.  399 

this  paper.  The  smolt,  as  is  well  known,  has  this  characteristic, 
as  also  has  the  newly  run  grilse  and  the  spring  salmon.  In 
other  words,  when  the  salmon  is  found  in  a  very  silvery  condition, 
at  a  time  remote  from  the  season  of  its  spawning,  the  scales  are 
very  deciduous.  Grilse  and  salmon,  in  a  more  or  lees  gravid 
condition,  after  a  stay  in  fresh  water,  do  not  show  this  pecuUarity, 
the  scales  heing  apparently  enclosed  firmly  in  the  skin  pockets. 

A  number  of  scales  from  the  fish  have  been  examined  by  my 
friend  Mr  H.  W.  Johnston,  Strathtay,  who  has  recently  made  a 
special  study  of  salmon  scales,  and  is  more  able  than  I  am  to  deal 
with  the  question  of  age  and  growth  as  shown  by  scales. 

From  notes  he  has  kindly  sent  me,  it  appears  that  in  his  opinion 
this  Uttle  salmon  has  attained  the  age  of  rather  less  than  two  and 
a  half  years,  and  that  fully  two  years  have  been  spent  in  fresh 
water.  Mr  Johnston  writes — "  The  area  of  the  fresh-water  scale 
growth  is  larger  than  is  usual  in  Tay  fish,  and  corresponds  more 
to  that  of  hand-fed  smolts  from  a  hatchery."  I  am  informed 
that  no  hatchery  exists  in  the  Gal  way  district.  It  is  possible, 
however,  that  the  conditions  of  feeding  may  vary  greatly  in 
diflferent  localities.  "In  the  early  part  of  the  third  year,"  that 
is,  when  the  fish  is  two  years  old  and  has  reached  the  migratory 
stage,  "  there  is  slightly  improved  growth,  owing  perhaps  to  (a) 
tidal  feeding  or  (b)  increased  temperature,  followed  immediately 
by  probably  continuous  sea  feeding,  and  corresponding  growth  of 
comparatively  brief  duration,  resembling  from  half  to  three 
quarters  of  that  generally  shown  by  a  grilse  in  its  first  summer 
in  the  sea.  There  is  no  trace  of  river  feeding  after  the  sea 
growth." 

I  am  therefore  inclined  to  the  view  that  the  presence  of  the  fish 
in  the  Galway  river,  a  quarter  of  a  mile  above  tide  reach,  is  not 
indicative  of  any  habit  which  the  salmon  at  this  stage  develops. 
The  presence  of  the  fish  in  fresh  water  at  this  stage  I  am  inclined 
to  regard  as  exceptional,  or  at  least  unusual.  The  specimen  is  a 
male,  with  genitaha  quite  undeveloped.  The  stomach  is  empty 
and  contracted,  but  the  pyloric  appendages  are  fairly  well  sur- 
rounded with  fat.  The  vomer  bone  has  the  usual  complement  of 
teeth  on  the  head,  while  on  the  shaft  of  the  bone  two  pairs  of 
teeth  are  still  present.     The  dorsal  and  caudal  fins  are  blackish 


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400  .       Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh, 


[« 


as  in  the  grilse,  and  the  caudal  fin  still  carries  several  spots.  The 
adipose  fin  is,  like  the  dorsum  of  the  fish,  a  dark  steel  colour.  The 
fork  in  the  tail  fin  is  well  marked.  Measurements  taken  with  the 
caudal  fin  imextended,  as  in  the  photograph,  show  that  the  lower 
lobe  of  the  fin  extends  2*5  cm.  beyond  the  central  part  of  the  fin. 

The  length  of  the  head  is  contained  4^  in  the  total  length. 
The  maxillary  bone  shows  a  condition  midway  between  that  notice- 


able in  the  parr  or  smolt  and  that  of  the  grilse  or  salmon.  In  the 
parr  the  posterior  margin  of  the  bone  reaches  to  a  point  vertically 
below  the  centre  of  the  eye.  In  the  adult  fish  the  maxillary  bone 
is  prolonged  backwards  to  a  point  vertically  below  the  posterior 
margin  of  the  eyeball,  or  beyond  the  eye  altogether.  In  the 
Gal  way  fish  the  point  at  which  the  maxillary  bone  ends  is 
vertically  below  the  posterior  margin  of  the  pupil  of  the  eye. 
This  and  the  arrangement  of  the  opercular  bones  will  be  seen  from 
the  accompanying  outline  drawing  of  the  head. 


(Issued  separately  February  1,  1905.) 


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Proc.  Roy.  Socy.  of  Ed  in  ^  [Vol.  XXV. 


Plate  I. — Tlie  Gal  way  R.  specinien. 


Mr  W.  L.  Calderwooi). 


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Proc   Rmj.  Son/,  o/ Blin.]  [Vol.  XXV. 


Plate  II. — Artificially  reared  salmon,  one,  two,  and  three  years  old.  The  largest  fish 
is,  like  the  fish  shown  immediately  above  it,  three  years  old,  but  has  been  one  year 
in  a  sea-water  pond.      It  is  33*0  cm.  long. 


Mr  W.  L.  Calderwood. 


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m 

To  prevent  delay,   authors  residing  abroad  should   appoint  some  one 
residing  in  this  country  tp  correct  their  proofs. 

4.  Additions  to  a  Paper  after  it  has  been  finally  handed  in  for 
publication,  if  accepted  by  the  Council,  will  be  treated  and  dated  as 
separate  communications,  and  may,  or  may  not,  be  printed  immediately 
after  the  original  paper. 

5.  Brief  Abstracts  op  Transactions  Papers  will  be  published  in 
the  Proceedings,  provided  they  are  sent  along  with  the  original  paper, 

6.  Separate  Issue  of  Reprints;  Author's  Free  and  Additional 
Copies. — As  soon  as  the  final  revise  of  a  Transactions  paper  has  been 
returned,  or  as  soon  as  the  sheet  in  which  the  last  part  of  a  Proceedings 
paper  appears  is  ready  for  press,  a  certain  number  of  separate  copies  or 
reprints,  in  covers  bearing  the  title  of  the  paper  and  the  name  of  the 
author,  are  printed  off  and  placed  on  sale.  The  date  of  such  separate 
publication  will  be  printed  on  each  paper. 

The  author  receives  fifty  of  these  reprints  free,  and  may  have  any 
reasonable  number  of  additional  copies  at  a  fixed  scale  of  prices  which 
will  be  furnished  by  the  printer,  who  will  charge  him  with  the  cost. 
To  prevent  disappointment,  especially  if  the  paper  contains  plates, 
the  author  should,  immediately  after  receiving  his  first  proof,  notify 
to  tlie  printer  the  number  of  additional  copies  required. 

7.  Index  Slips. — In  order  to  facilitate  the  compilation  of  Subject 
Indices,  and  to  secure  that  due  attention  to  the  important  points  in  a 
paper  shall  be  given  in  General  Catalogues  of  Scientific  Literature  and 
in  Abstracts  by  Periodicals,  every  author  is  requested  to  return  to  the 
Secretary  along  with  his  final  proof  a  brief  index  (on  the  model  given 
below),  of  the  points  in  it  which  he  considers  new  or  important.  These 
indices  will  be  edited  by  the  Secretary,  and  incorporated  in  Separate 
Index  Slips,  to  be  issued  with  each  part  of  the  Proceedings  and 
Transactions. 


MODEL  INDEX. 

Schafer,  E.  A. — On  the  Existence  within  the  Liver  CeUs  of  Channels  which  can 
be  directly  injected  from  the  Blood- vesaels.    Proc.  Roy.  Soc.  Edin.,  vol.      , 
1902,  pp. 
Cells,  Liver, — Intra-cellular  Canaliculi  in. 

E.  A.  Schafer.    Proc.  Roy.  Soc.  Edin.,  vol.        ,  1902,  pp. 
liver, — Injection  within  Cells  of. 

E.  A.  Schafer.    Proc.  Roy.  Soc.  Edin.,  vol.         ,1902,  pp. 


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iv  CONTENTS. 


PAGE 


The  Sum  of  the  Signed  Primary  Minors  of  a  Detenninant 

By  Thomas  Muir,  LL.D.,       .  .  .  .372 

{IssvM  separately  January  20,  1905.) 

Crystallographical   Notes.      By  Hugh  Marshall,   D.Sc., 

F.R.S., 383 

{Issued  separately  February  1,  1905.) 

The  Effect  of  Simultaneous  Removal  of  Thymus  and 
Spleen  in  young  Guinea-pigs.  By  D.  Noel  Paton 
and  Alexander  Goodall.  {Frwn  tlie  LahmaJory  of 
tJie  Royal  College  of  Physicians,  Edinburgh),  .  .       389 

{Issued  separately  February  1,  1905.) 

Networks    of    the    Plane    in    Absolute    Geometry.      By 
Duncan  M.  Y.  Sommerville,  M.A.,  B.Sc.,  University 
of  St  Andrews.     {Abstract).     {Communicated  by  Pro- 
fessor P.  R.  Scott  Lang),       ....       392 
{Issued  separately  February  1, 1905.) 

A  Specimen  of  the  Salmon  in  transition  from  the  Smolt  to 
the  Grilse  Stage.      By  W.  L.  Calderwood.     (With 
Two  Plates),    .  .  .  .  .  .395 

{Issued  separately  February  1,  1905.) 


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PROCEEDINGS 

OF  THE 

ROYAL  SOCIETY  OF  EDINBURGH. 

SESSION  1904-5. 


No.  VI]  VOL.    XXV.  [Pp.  401-464. 


CONTENTS. 


PAGE 


A  Comparative  Study  of  tlie  Lakes  of  Scotland  ana 
Denmark.  By  Dr  C.  Wesenbkrg-Lund,  of  the 
Danish  Fresh-water  Biological  Station,  Frederiksdal, 
near  K.  Lyngby,  Denmark.  (Coimnunicafed  by  Sir 
John  Murray,  K.C.B.,  F.R.S.)  {From  the  DanisJr 
FresJi'Water  Biolofjiral  Laboratory,  Fredeinksdal.) 
OVith  Two  Plates),    .  .  .  .  .401 

{Issued  separately  March  3,  1905.) 

Variations  in  the  Crystallisation  of  Potassium  Hydrogen 
Succinate  due  to  the  presence  of  other  metallic  com- 
pounds in  the  Solution.  {Preliminary  Notice.)  By 
Alexander  T.  Cameron,  M.A.  {Comimmicated  by 
Dr  Hugh  Marshall,  F.R.S.),  .  .  .       44D 

{Tssi'cd  separately  February  4,  1905.) 

[Continued  on  page  iv  of  Cover. 

JL  -    - 

^EDINBURGH : 

Published  by  ROBERT  GRANT  &  SON,  107  Princes  Stkbkt,  and 
"WILLIAMS  k  NORGATE,  14  Henrietta  Strekt,  Covent  Garden,  London. 

MDCCCCV. 

Price  Three  Shillings  ami  Sixpence. 


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EEGULATIONS  REGARDING  THE  PUBLICATION  OF 
PAPERS  IN  THE  PROCEEDINGS  AND  TRANS- 
ACTIONS OF  THE  SOCIETY. 

Th£  Council  beg  to  direct  the  attention  of  authors  of  communications  to 
the  Society  to  the  following  Regulations,  which  have  been  drawn  up  in 
order  to  accelerate  the  publication  of  the  Proceedings  and  TransaetioDs, 
and  to  utilise  as  widely  and  as  fairly  as  possible  the  funds  which  the 
Society  devotes  to  the  publication  of  Scientific  and  Literary  Researches. 

1.  Manuscript  op  Papers. — As  soon  as  any  paper  has  been  passed 
for  publication,  either  in  its  original  or  in  any  altered  form,  and  has  been 
made  ready  for  publication  by  the  author,  it  is  sent  to  the  printer, 
whether  it  has  been  read  or  not. 

The  *  copy  *  should  be  written  on  large  sheets  of  paper,  on  one  side 
only,  and  the  pages  should  be  clearly  numbered.  The  MS.  must  be 
easily  legible,  preferably  typewritten,  and  must  be  absolutely  in  its  final 
form  for  printing ;  so  that  corrections  in  proof  shall  be  as  few  as  possible, 
and  shall  not  cause  overrunning  in  the  lines  or  pages  of  the  proof.  All 
tables  of  contents,  references  to  plates  or  illustrations  in  the  text,  etc., 
must  be  in  their  proper  places,  with  the  page  numbers  left  blank ;  and 
spaces  must  be  indicated  for  the  insertion  of  illustrations  that  are  to 
appear  in  the  text. 

2.  Illustrations. — All  illustrations  must  be  drawn  in  a  form  im- 
mediately suitable  for  reproduction;  and  such  illustrations  as  can  be 
reproduced  by  photographic  processes  should,  so  far  as  possible,  be 
preferred.  Drawings  to  be  reproduced  as  line  blocks  should  be  made 
with  Indian  ink  (deadened  with  yellow  if  of  bluish  tone),  preferably  on 
fine  white  bristol  board,  free  from  folds  or  creases ;  smooth,  clean  lines 
or  sharp  dots,  but  no  washes  or  colours  should  be  used.  If  the  drawings 
are  done  on  a  large  scale,  to  be  afterwards  reduced  by  photography,  any 
lettering  or  other  legend  must  be  on  a  corresponding  scale. 

If  an  author  finds  it  inconvenient  to  furnish  such  drawings,  the  Society 
will  have  the  figures  re-drawn  at  his  expense ;  but  this  will  cause  delay. 

When  the  illustrations  are  to  form  plates,  a  scheme  for  the  arrange- 
ment of  the  figures  (in  quarto  plates  for  the  Transactions,  in  octavo  for 
the  Proceedings)  must  be  given,  and  numbering  and  lettering  indicated. 

3.  Proofs. — In  general,  a  first  proof  and  a  revise  of  each  paper  will 
be  sent  to  the  author,  whose  address  should  be  indicated  on  the  MS. 
if  further  proofs  are  required,  owing  to  corrections  or  alterations  for 
which  the  printer  is  not  responsible,  the  expense  of  such  proofs  and 
corrections  will  be  charged  against  the  author. 

All  proofs  must,  if  possible,  be  returned  within  one  week,  addressed  to 
77ie  Secretary,  Royal  Society,  Mouncl,  Edinburgh,  and  not  to  the  printer, 

[Continued  mi  page  m  of  Cover, 

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a904-5.]    Study  of  the  Lakes  of  Scotland  and  Denmark.       401 


A  Compcurative  Study  of  the  Lakes  of  Scotland  and 
Denmark.  By  Dr  C.  Wesenberg-Lund,  of  the  Danish 
Fresh-water  Biological  Station,  Frederiksdal,  near  K.  Lyngby, 
Denmark.  Communicated  by  Sir  John  Murray,  K.C.B.^ 
F.R.S.  {From  the  Danish  Fresh-waier  Biological  Laboratory ^ 
Frederiksdai.)    (With  Two  Plates.) 

(MS.  received  January  13,  1905.     Read  January  23,  1905.) 

Introduction. 

In  June  1904  I  received  an  invitation  from  Sir  John  Murray  to 
visit  Scotland  and  spend  three  or  four  weeks  in  exploring  the 
Scottish  lakes,  in  order  to  make  a  comparison  between  them  and 
the  Danish  lakes  :  he  was  of  opinion  that  such  a  comparison  of 
the  lakes  of  a  highland  and  a  lowland  country,  which  had  hitherto 
not  been  attempted,  would  lead  to  some  interesting  results.  The 
admirable  bathymetrical  and  physical  explorations  carried  on  by 
Sir  John  Murray  in  Scotland,  and  more  especially  in  Loch  Ness, 
being  far  advanced,  the  question  as  to  the  scope  of  the  biological 
observations  called  for  consideration  ;  so  he  desired  me  to  indicate, 
from  the  impressions  derived  during  my  visit,  my  views  as  to  the 
most  useful  lines  of  investigation  that  might  be  taken  up  with 
reference  to  the  biology  of  the  Scottish  lakes.  I  was  much 
interested  in  the  task  imposed  upon  me,  and  at  the  same  time 
gratified  at  the  prospect  of  assisting  in  the  design  of  the  biological 
explorations  in  the  lakes  of  a  foreign  country  ;  and  as  it  was  of  the 
greatest  significance  to  me  to  learn  the  nature  of  alpine  lakes,  I 
immediately  accepted  the  invitation.  I  spent  three  weeks  in 
Scotland, — the  first  two  at  Fort  Augustus,  on  Loch  Ness,  and  the 
third  in  Edinburgh.  From  Fort  Augustus  I  explored  the  lakes  of 
the  Caledonian  Canal,  and  thus  became  acquainted  with  alpine 
lakes ;  from  Edinburgh  I  explored  a  few  lowland  lakes,  especially 
Loch  Leven.  The  steamer  Mermaid,  belonging  to  the  Marine 
Biological  Station  at  Millport,  fully  equipped  for  deep-sea  work, 

PROC.  ROY.  SOC.  BDIN. — VOL.  XXV.  26 


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402        .  Pro(xediiigB  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh.  {i 

under  the  direction  of  Dr  Gremmill,  was  sent  into  the  Caledonian 
Canal,  and  many  hauls  were  taken  with  the  dredge  and  trawl,  as 
well  as  with  different  kinds  of  tow-nets,  in  Lochs  Lochy,  Oich, 
and  Ness,  down  to  the  greatest  depths  (500  and  750  feet). 

Before  entering  on  the  suhject  of  this  paper,  I  beg  to  tender  to 
Sir  John  Murray  my  most  cordial  thanks  for  his  invitation  and 
for  his  kindness  to  me  during  my  stay  in  Scotland.  As  regards 
limnological  explorations,  Scotland  was  a  few  years  ago  a  complete 
terra  incognita,  but  when  the  work  of  the  Lake  Survey  is  com- 
pleted there  will  undoubtedly  be  no  other  country  in  which  the 
lakes  have  been  better  studied  than  in  Scotland.  On  Loch  Ness 
I  learnt  the  methods  employed  in  taking  the  temperature  and 
other  physical  observations ;  and  when  the  numerous  observations 
and  enormous  mass  of  material  have  been  worked  out,  I  think  that 
Loch  Ness,  as  regards  the  bathymetrical  and  other  physical  con- 
ditions, will  be  one  of  the  best  explored  lakes  in  the  world — 
perhaps  only  equalled  by  the  I^ke  of  Geneva. 

It  has  hitherto  been  difficult  to  give  equal  prominence  to  the 
physico-chemical  investigations,  on  the  one  hand,  and  the  biological 
investigations,  on  the  other,  in  the  study  of  the  lakes  in  different 
countries,  owing  mainly  to  the  lack  of  scientists  versed  in  the 
different  branches  of  limnology,  and  interested  alike  in  these  two 
great  departments.  The  admirable  explorations  carried  on  by 
Professor  F.  A.  Forel  and  his  pupils  show  what  excellent  results 
may  be  obtained  when  the  investigations  are  planned  on  a  uniform 
basis.  I  trust  that  Sir  John  Murray  and  Mr  Laurence  PuUar  will 
agree  with  me  in  expressing  the  hope  that,  on  the  completion  of 
the  bathymetrical  and  physical  survey  so  admirably  commenced 
by  Sir  John  Murray,  and  continued  at  the  joint  expense  of  both 
gentlemen,  the  work  may  be  still  further  carried  on  in  such  a 
manner  as  to  utilise  the  results  yielded  as  to  the  biological 
study  of  lakes.  I  am  quite  well  aware,  as  will  be  seen  from 
the  following  pages,  that  the  study  of  organisms,  and  especially 
of  the  influence  of  organic  life  upon  the  general  conditions  of  a 
lake  and  its  environs,  presents  greater  difficulties  in  alpine 
countries  than  in  lowland  countries.  The  problems  presented 
by  the  local  conditions  of  lakes  can  perhaps  be  better  studied 
in  Scotland  than  in  any  other  country ;  and  I  sincerely  hope  that 


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1904-5.]     Study  of  the  Lakes  of  Scotland  and  Denmark.       40Ji 

the  investigations  relating  to  the  extremely  interesting  plankton, 
the  bottom-fauna,  the  Diatom  flora  of  the  shores,  and  the  influence 
of  water  rich  in  humic  acid  upon  fresh-water  organisms,  may  be 
studied  in  accordance  with  the  knowledge  which  has  been  gained 
of  the  life-conditions  common  to  all  organic  life.  It  would  be 
most  unfortunate  for  the  study  of  fresh-water  and  its  organisms  if, 
in  a  country  where  the  knowledge  of  the  life-conditions  is  so 
prominent,  this  knowledge  should  not  be  fully  utilised. 

During  the  last  fifteen  years  I  have  spent  most  of  my  time  in 
the  study  of  our  own  lakes  and  their  organic  life,  and  I  hope 
that  my  statements  in  the  following  condensed  and  brief  account 
of  the  Danish  lakes  may  prove  reliable  ;  time  will  show  whether 
I  have  carried  my  generalisations  too  far.  What  I  learnt  re- 
garding the  Scottish  lakes  brought  to  light  many  differences 
between  them  and  our  own  lakes ;  and  I  had  occasion  to  make 
some  observations  which,  if  carried  further,  would  have  served 
as  starting-points  upon  which  to  base  my  working  theories.  My 
knowledge  of  the  Scottish  lakes  is,  of  course,  very  limited,  but  I 
hold  it  to  be  the  duty  of  a  scientist  not  only  to  make  known  the 
actual  facts  observed  by  him,  but  also  his  ideas  as  to  the  bearing 
of  these  facts.  Strictly  speaking,  new  ideas  should  be  regarded 
not  so  much  from  the  standpoint  as  to  whether  they  may  be 
right  or  wrong,  but  rather  as  to  their  value  in  the  promotion  of 
scientific  knowledge ;  and  I  hope  the  following  pages  may  contain 
ideas  useful  in  some  measure  in  future  investigations. 

I. 

Gbnbral  Rbmarks  on  the  Natural  Conditions  op  thb 
Danish  and  Scottish  Lakes. 

A.  The  Danish  Lakes. 

My  explorations  have  shown  the  most  remarkable  differences 
between  the  Danish  and  the  larger  Scottish  lakes  in  nearly  all  par- 
ticulars, which  was  to  be  expected,  considering  the  wide  divergence 
in  the  geological  structure  of  the  two  countries.  I  would  here 
merely  point  out  that  Denmark  is  a  lowland  country,  the  highest 
eminences  not  exceeding  500  to  550  feet  above  sea-level,  and. 


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404  Froceedings  of  Boyal  Society  of  Edinburgh,  [i 

geologically  speaking,  it  is  of  recent  origin,  being  built  up  of  very 
light  and  friable  soil— mostly  the  moraines  of  those  enormous 
^aciers  which  covered  Denmark  and  the  surrounding  seas  during 
the  Ice  Age.  It  is  probable  that  lime  strata  of  different  geological 
ages  occur  nearly  everywhere  beneath  the  soil,  rising  in  certain 
places  to  the  surface,  and  in  other  places  not  far  below  the  surface. 
The  soil  itself  is  commonly  very  rich  in  lime,  which  is  washed  out 
by  the  rivers  and  carried  into  the  lakes.  The  rainfall  is  not  great^ 
only  about  614  mm.  (24  inches)  per  annum;  and  this,  in  con- 
junction with  the  lowness  of  the  country  and  the  friable  soil, 
accounts  for  the  fact  that  the  rivers  are  all  small— rarely  more 
than  about  50  feet  in  breadth,  with  level  courses  (falls  being 
quite  unknown),  and  transporting  only  a  small  quantity  of  water. 
The  outflow  of  water  from  the  rivers  is  greatest  in  spring  after 
sudden  thaws,  and  least  in  summer  (especially  in  dry  seasons)  and 
in  autumn,  increasing  considerably  in  November  and  December, 
with  their  abundant  rainfall.  As  an  example  we  may  take  the 
liver  Skem  in  Jutland,  which  in  summer  discharges  at  its  outlet 
only  about  500  cubic  feet  per  second,  while  in  spring  it  may  dis- 
charge about  7500  cubic  feet  per  second. 

Denmark  is  now  rather  deficient  in  lakes,  though  at  an  earlier 
period  they  must  have  been  more  numerous.  They  are  all  very 
small,  the  largest  covering  an  area  of  only  about  40  square  kilo- 
metres (about  14 J  square  miles),  while  the  great  majority  are  much 
smaller.  Their  depth  is  inconsiderable,  as  was  to  be  expected  in 
a<  low  and  flat  country;  exceptionally,  depths  of  about  120  feet 
have  been  recorded,  but  the  majority  are  only  40  to  60  feet  in 
depth,  while  some  of  the  largest  lakes  are  in  fact  merely  great 
pools,  with  a  maximum  depth  of  only  10  ta  12  feet.  Denmark  is, 
on  the  whole,  a  flat  country,  with  no-deep  depressions,  and  most  of 
the  lakes  are  roimdish  in  outline,  long  and  narrow  lakes  being  rare  ; 
formerly  the  lakes  were  much  more  irregular,  but  owing  to  the 
silting  up  of  the  bays  and  shallower  parts  the  shore-lines  show  very 
few  sinuosities,  though  some  of  the  larger  lakes  are  very  irregular. 

The  renewal  of  the  water  in  the  lakes  goes  on  very  slowly.  As 
the  amount  of  water  carried  into  the  lakes  by  rivers  is  always 
greatest  in  spring  and  slowly  diminishes  in  summer,  it  will  be 
understood   that  the  level  of  the  lakes  is  highest  in  spring  and 


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1904-5.]     Study  of  the  Lakes  of  Scotland  and  Denmark.       405 

lowest  in  August  and  September,  the  diiference  amounting  to  2  or 
3  feet  in  the  two  seasons.  Hence  it  follows  that  in  our  shallow 
lakes  the  breadth  of  the  beach  increases  in  summer  and  autumn 
to  the  extent  of  several  hundred  feet,  and  in  winter  and  spni^ 
the  ice  or  the  waves  cover  places  over  which  one  might  walk  dry- 
shod  in  summer. 

The  sides  of  the  lakes  are  gently  sloping ;  and  the  same  remark 
applies  to  what  the  Germans  term  "uferbank,"  and  the  French 
and  Swiss  term  "  beine."  The  deeper  parts  of  the  lakes  are  floored 
by  more  or  less  level  plains,  the  greatest  depth  being  often  found 
near  the  centre.  Islands  are  not  common,  though  both  islands 
and  banks  occur.  Owing  to  the  small  amount  of  detritus  carried 
down  by  the  rivers,  deltas  are  usually  inconspicuous,  and  well- 
marked  banks  at  the  embouchures  of  the  rivers  are  rare. 

Erosion  by  waves  upon  the  shores  is  seldom  conspicuous,  as  the 
force  of  the  waves  is  broken  in  rolling  over  the  shallow  plains, 
often  covered  and  bound  together  by  vegetation.  The  wind- 
blown sides  of  the  lakes  (especially  the  east-south-east  shores)  are 
frequently  sandy,  or  covered  with  stones  and  pebbles,  while  the 
west  and  north-west  shores  are  often  peaty.  On  the  other  hand, 
certain  parts  of  the  lake-shores  show  remarkable  indications  of 
erosion,  and  these  are  most  conspicuous  where  the  shores  are 
covered  with  wood ;  here  one  may  see  trees  with  scars  and  rifts 
2  to  3  feet  from  the  ground,  and  often  showing  remarkably 
irregular  forms.  Further,  one  may  find  many  overthrown  trees 
and  dead  shrubs  standing  high  upon  their  washed-out  white  roots. 
In  the  few  cases  where  the  shores  rise  precipitously  from  the 
water's  edge  marks  of  erosion  are  often  found,  and  abundance  of 
stones  and  pebbles  washed  down  from  the  slopes  above.  This 
erosion,  however,  is  to  be  ascribed  rather  to  the  action  of  ice  than 
to  that  of  waves.  In  spring,  when  the  ice  breaks  up,  it  is  often 
piled  into  heaps  2  to  4  feet  high,  in  front  of  which  one  always 
finds  a  very  conspicuous  "end-moraine,"  consisting  of  gravel, 
stones,  broken  PhragmiteSy  shells  of  mussels  and  Limncea,  and 
various  drift-materials.  It  may  be  pushed  20  to  25  feet  from  the 
shore,  and  even — to  the  amazement  of  a  naturalist— remain  there 
from  one  year  to  another.  The  ground  over  which  the  ice  has 
travelled  will  show,  after  the   disappearance  of  the  ice,  a  very 


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406  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh,  [\ 

conspicuous  ''bottom-moraine,^  consisting  of  the  shells  of 
AftodorUa,  etc.,  which  may  be  scattered  over  the  ground  iu 
thousands ;  stones  are  polished,  and  the  ice,  striking  against  the 
trees,  causes  the  rifts  and  wounds  referred  to  above.  Many  treea^ 
on  the  prominent  points  bordering  the  lakes,  are  killed  by  these 
heaps  of  ice,  which  are  piled  up  year  after  year  on  the  shores  of 
our  lakes  (see  fig.  1).  We  may  also  mention  that  the  ice-slabs  in 
spring  often  break  great  apertures  in  the  closed  stocks  of  Phragmites 
and  Scirpus,  detaching  large  patches  of  rhizomes  a  square  metre 
(over  a  square  yard)  in  extent  and  throwing  them  on  shore ;  the 
ice  may  in  the  course  of  a  few  hours  cover  over  a  peaty  shore 
with  sand,  or  cover  a  sandy  beach  with  peat-forming  material. 

With  reference  to  the  temperature  of  the  Danish  lakes,  it  is  to 
be  regretted  that  the  observations  are  rather  deficient.  Still,  it 
may  be  stated  generally  that  the  temperature  of  the  water  follows 
very  closely  the  changes  in  the  temperature  of  the  air.  Having 
exemplified  this  statement  in  my  Plankton  paper,  I  shall  here 
only  remark  that  the  surface  waters  of  our  lakes  are  generally 
very  warm  in  summer,  often  attaining  a  temperature  as  high  as 
23**  C.  (73*  F.),  and  in  hot  summers  the  water  may  maintain  a 
temperature  of  20*  to  23*  C.  (68*  to  73'  F.)  for  more  than  a 
month  :  it  is  very  rarely  that  the  surface  temperature  in  summer 
falls  below  16*  C.  (61*  F.).  Almost  every  winter  most  of  the 
lakes  are  frozen  over,  though  the  length  of  the  period  during 
which  they  are  ice-bound  varies  greatly  in  different  years,  but 
never  exceeds  more  than  about  four  months.  The  observations  I 
have  made  show  that  the  lakes  are  usually  frozen  for  one  or  two 
months,  generally  from  about  15th  January  to  15th  March,  but 
exceptionally  they  may  not  be  frozen  at  all.  As  we  have  often  a 
short  spell  of  frost  in  November  and  December,  followed  by  thaw, 
usually  followed  again  by  the  customary  long  period  of  frost  in 
January  to  March,  the  smaller  lakes  may  have  two  ice-bound 
periods — a  short  one  in  December  and  a  longer  one  in  January  to 
March,  but  in  the  larger  and  deeper  lakes  only  the  latter  period 
prevails.  As  most  of  our  lakes  resemble  each  other  as  regards 
height  above  the  sea,  latitude,  depth,  and  form  of  basin,  it  will  be 
understood  that  they  vary  little  in  temperature.  It  may  generally 
bo  said  that  the  deeper  and  narrower  the  lake  and  the  steeper  the 


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1904-6.]     SPudy  of  the  Lakes  of  Scotland  and  Denmark.       407 

sides,  the  more  will  the  temperature  of  the  water  differ  from  that 
of  the  air;  it  will  take  a  longer  time  to  freeze  over,  but  will 
remain  ice-bound  much  longer  than  a  shallow  lake,  and  the 
temperature  of  the  water  will  rise  more  slowly,  never  attaining  the 
high  temperature  of  the  shallower  lake.  Only  in  oiie  Danish  lake 
(Haldso)  does  the  temperature  of  the  water  appear  to  differ 
essentially  from  that  of  the  other  lakes.  Thus  the  mean  tempera- 
ture of  the  air  in  July  1901  was  extremely  high, — 19*9*  C. 
(67-8'  F.),  and  the  surface  temperature  of  all  our  lakes  except 
Haldso  was  21"  to  23*  C.  (70'  to  73"  F.),  while  in  Haldso  the 
temperature  never  exceeded  18'  C.  (64*  F.);  in  the  winter 
of  1901-2  the  other  lakes  were  ice-bound  from  39  to  65  days, 
whereas  Haldso  was  only  ice-bound  for  35  days.  It  may  be 
added  that  Haldso  is  one  of  our  deepest  lakes  (about  120  feet), 
and  has  more  precipitous  shores  than  any  of  the  others. 

The  transparency  of  the  water  in  our  lakes  is  small,  and  varies 
regularly  with  the  season  of  the  year,  being  always  greatest  in 
spring,  diminishing  during  the  last  days  of  April,  and  least  in 
August.  During  the  ice-bound  period  the  water  becomes  much 
clearer,  all  the  detritus  and  huge  masses  of  phytoplankton  being 
precipitated  to  the  bottom. 

The  colour  of  the  water  in  the  Danish  lakes  in  April,  after  the 
ice  has  broken  up,  is  nearly  always  a  bright  blue,  but  this  colour 
only  continues  till  the  beginning  of  May,  when  most  of  the  lakes 
become  of  a  yellowish-green  colour,  which  continues  to  be  the 
predominant  colour  till  the  frost  sets  in.  In  hot  summers  the 
surface  is  generally  covered  by  a  coating  of  **  wasserbliithe,''  and 
then  the  colour  changes  to  blue-green  or  green ;  in  cold  summers 
no  **  wasserbliithe  "  appears  on  the  deeper  and  colder  lakes. 

As  regards  the  chemical  composition  of  the  water,,  very  few 
observations  have  as  yet  been  made,  but  I  hope  this  will  soon 
be  remedied. 

B.   77w  Scottish  Lakes, 

Comparing  the  natural  conditions  of  the  Danish  lakes,  as 
indicated  in  the  foregoing  pages,  with  those  of  the  Scottish  lakes, 
we  shall  find  the  greatest  differences  in  nearly  every  detail.  It 
must  be  borne  in  mind  that  geologically  Scotland   is  a  very  old 


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408  Proceedings  of  Roycd  Society  of  Edinburgh,  [ssas. 

country,  for  the  most  part  built  up  of  hard  rocks.  Nearly  all 
the  lakes  belong  to  the  Highlands,  the  highest  mountain  peaks 
attaining  an  elevation  of  more  than  4000  feet  above  sea-leveL  It 
is  unnecessary  in  this  short  paper  to  enter  into  the  chemical 
composition  of  the  rocks,  but  I  think  I  am  right  in  stating  that,  as 
compared  with  Denmark,  lime  generally  plays  a  subordinate  r61e 
in  the  chemical  composition  of  the  Scottish  Highlands,  and  I  am 
of  opinion  that  the  amount  of  lime  washed  out  by  rivers  and 
carried  into  the  lakes  is  nearly  everywhere  inconsiderable.  The 
Scottish  rivers,  with  their  rapid  currents,  their  sources  high  up  in 
the  mountains,  their  great  eroding  powers  and  waterfalls,  are  quite 
different  from  our  little  brooks.  As  far  as  I  could  gather  from  the 
members  of  the  Lake  Survey  staff,  there  are  no  special  seasons  in 
which  the  rivers  carry  exceptional  quantities  of  water  into  the 
lakes  or  into  the  sea.  At  different  times  of  the  year,  though 
probably  mostly  in  spring,  the  rivers  after  heavy  rains  become 
swollen,  and  after  periods  of  drought  they  become  low,  but  this 
rise  and  fall  are  not,  to  the  same  extent  as  in  Denmark,  restricted 
to  certain  seasons,  and  the  suddenness  with  which  the  Scottish 
rivers  come  down  in  flood  has  no  parallel  with  us. 

These  differences  are  closely  connected  with  the  wide  divergence 
in  the  geological  structure  and  climatological  conditions  of  the 
two  countries — the  one  a  low  country,  with  moderate  rainfall ;  the 
other  mountainous,  with  a  heavy  rtdnfall,*  the  hilltops  shrouded  in 
mists,  and  the  hills  themselves  clothed  with  peat  or  peat-mosses, 
which  suck  up  the  water  .  like  a  sponge  and  feed  the  rivers. 
While  Denmark  has  few  lakes,  Scotland  has  very  many  ;  and 
though  generally  of  moderate  size,  many  of  them  are  much  larger 
than  the  Danish  lakes.  The  main  difference  is  the  great  depth  of 
the  Scottish  lakes,  often  exceeding  500  feet,  and  in  one  case  (Loch 
Morar)  exceeding  1000  feet,  and  they  are  nearly  all  long  and 
narrow,  none  of  the  larger  ones  being  circular,  as  is  the  case  with 
many  of  the  Danish  lakes.  Their  narrow  form  facilitates  the 
renewal  of  the  water,  and  the  sudden  flooding  of  the  rivers  at 
nearly  all  seasons  of  the  year  causes  rapid  changes  in  the  level  of 
the  lakes.     With  these  phenomena  we  have  hardly  anything  to 

*  In  the  western  Highlands  the  raiufall  is  five  to  seven  times  greater  than 
in  Denmark. 


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-1904-6.]     Stvdy  of  the  Lakes  of  ScotlaTid  and  Denmark        409 

compare  in  Denmark  ;  and  the  regular,  but  slow  and  comparatively 
slight,  rise  in  the  level  of  our  lakes  in  spring,  and  the  fall  in 
summer,  have,  generally  speaking,  as  far  as  my  information  goes, 
no,  or  only  a  slight,  counterpart  in  Scotland. 

I  consider  the  steep  and  precipitous  shores  of  the  Scottish  lakes 
to  be  one  of  their  most  prominent  characters  (see  figs.  3  and  4). 
From  what  I  know  (unfortunately  only  from  the  literature)  of  the 
alpine  lakes  of  S\vitzerland,  the  Scottish  lakes  generally  surpass 
them  in  this  respect;  in  Scotland  the  mountains  often  descend 
almost  vertically  into  the  lakes,  and  depths  of  500  feet  may  be 
found  only  a  few  yards  from  shore.  Consequently  there  may  be 
no  beach,  or  only  a  very  narrow  one,  and  I  suppose  the  same 
may  be  said  of  the  "  beine." 

The  Scottish  lakes  resemble  the  Danish  ones  in  that  the 
greatest  depth  is  generally  found  near  the  centre  of  the  lake,  and 
that  banks  and  well-marked  deep  holes  are  rare.  Owing  to  the 
large  amount  of  detritus  carried  down  by  the  rivers,  banks  are 
common  opposite  the  mouths  of  the  rivers,  and  well-defined  delta 
formations  seem  to  be  a  frequent  feature.  Where  beaches  occur, 
they  very  often  consist  of  pebbles  and  cobblestones,  which  during 
storms  are  agitated  by  the  waves ;  the  erosion  of  the  waves  upon 
the  rocks  is  often  very  conspicuous. 

With  reference  to  the  temperature  of  the  water,  the  excellent 
observations  of  the  Lake  Survey  show  great  differences  between 
the  Scottish  and  Danish  lakes.  The  larger  Highland  lakes  are 
never  ice-bound,  the  surface  temperature  in  winter  being  generally 
from  5'  to  7*  C.  (41*  to  45"  F.).  On  the  other  hand,  the  maximum 
temperature  in  the  same  lakes  in  summer  will  never  (I  am 
informed)  exceed  18°  C.  (64°  F.).  It  will  thus  be  seen  that, 
while  the  surface  temperature  of  the  Danish  lakes  varies  from  a 
little  below  zero  to  23*  or  25"  C.  (73"  or  77"  F.),  the  amplitude  of 
the  variation  in  the  surface  temperature  of  the  larger  Highland  lakes 
is  only  from  about  5"  -  7"  C.  (41"  -  45"  F.)  to  18"  C.  (64"  F.). 

The  tranaparency  of  the  water  in  the  Scottish  lakes  is,  strange 
to  say,  not  much  greater  than  in  the  Danish  lakes.  ForeFs  disc  in 
Loch  Ness  disappears  at  24  or  25  feet,  and  I  am  told  that  in  other 
Scottish  lakes  the  transparency  is  even  less.  This  fact  is  very 
remarkable,  and,  so  far  as  I  know,  at  variance  with  what  one  might 


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410  Proceedings  of  JRoyal  Society  of  Edinburgh,  [am. 

expect  from  the  observations  in  other  alpine  lakes.  As  regards 
the  transparency,  there  is  still  this  great  difference  between  the 
lakes  of  the  two  countries — that  in  the  Danish  lakes  the  trans- 
parency is  always  and  everywhere  greatest  in  spring,  and  slowly 
diminishes  with  increasing  temperature,  whereas  in  the  Scottish 
lakes,  according  to  my  informants,  the  transparency  is  nearly 
constant  all  the  year  round,  but  may  at  any  season,  especially 
after  heavy  rains,  be  suddenly  greatly  reduced. 

As  to  the  colour  of  the  water,  another  great  difference  between 
Danish  and  Scottish  lakes  is  to  be  noted ;  for  while  the  colour  of 
our  lakes  undergoes  a  regular  alternation,  strictly  dependent  on  the 
different  seasons,  the  colour  of  the  Scottish  lakes  varies  very 
little  at  all  seasons.  The  larger  Scottish  lakes  never  show  that 
turbid  yellowish-green  colour  so  characteristic  of  nearly  all  our 
lakes  from  May  to  November,  nor  the  deep  blue  colour  displayed 
by  our  lakes  in  April,  neither  are  they  covered  with  "wasserbliithe" 
caused  by  blue-green  Algse.  The  water  in  all  the  Scottish  lakes 
seems  to  be  very  clear,  but  has  a  yellowish-brown  colour,  quite  dif- 
ferent from  the  blue  colour  of  most  of  the  alpine  lakes  in  Switzer- 
land, which  are  also  characterised  by  the  great  transparency  of  the 
water:  in  both  the  Swiss  and  Danish  lakes  the  transparency  is 
much  greater  in  winter  and  spring  than  in  summer  and  autumn. 

As  will  be  noted  in  a  later  chapter,  the  colouring  of  the  Danish 
waters  is  due  to  the  plankton ;  the  colouring  of  the  Scottish  lakes 
has  quite  a  different  origin.  It  must  be  remembered  that  the 
Scottish  rivers  nearly  always  drain  through  peaty  bogs  and  the 
moss-covered  sloping  sides  of  the  mountains,  and  only  very 
rarely,  and  for  a  short  period  of  the  year,  do  the  rivers  obtain 
their  water  directly  from  the  snow.  1  am  told  that  the  layer  of 
peat  on  the  mountains  may  attain  a  thickness  of  1  to  2  feet, 
and  it  will  therefore  be  easily  understood  that  the  water  of  the 
Scottish  lakes  must  necessarily  be  peaty  and  very  rich  in  humic 
acid,  and  this  fact  accounts  for  their  yellow-brown  colour  and  very 
slight  transparency.  In  my  opinion  we  have  here  the  most  strik- 
ing and  the  most  interesting  difference  between  the  alpine  lakes  of 
Switzerland,  with  their  clear  blue  water,  their  rivers  fed  directly 
from  the  vast  eternal  glaciers,  and  the  alpine  lakes  of  Scotland,  with 
their  yellowish-brown  water,  their  rivers  rising  in  bogs  and  travcrs- 


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1904-5.]     Stttdy  of  the  Lakes  of  Scotland  and  Denmark.       411 

ing  the  moss-covered  precipitous  mountain  sides.  I  have  been  told 
that  Loch  Morar,  the  deepest  of  all  Scottish  lakes,  has  the  clearest 
water,  Forel's  disc  being  visible  at  a  depth  of  44  feet ;  and  in  this 
connection  it  is  of  great  interest  to  note  the  fact  that  the  rocks 
along  the  shores  of  Loch  Morar  and  all  over  the  drainage  area  are 
not  covered  with  peat  and  mosses,  but  are  for  the  most  part  quite 
bare.  As  far  as  I  know,  we  have  no  particularly  peaty  water  in 
any  of  our  larger  lakes,  though  it  is,  of  course,  a  very  common 
feature  in  the  smaller  lakes  surrounded  by  peat,  and  whose  floors 
are  covered  by  peaty  mud,  many  of  which  are  quite  artificial, 
being  due  to  the  digging  of  peat. 

The  foregoing  remarks  refer  only  to  the  character  of  the  Danish 
and  Scottish  lakes,  but  I  feel  convinced  that  many  of  the  facts 
stated  are  common  to  lakes  belonging  respectively  to  the  great 
Central  European  plain  and  to  alpine  countries.  As  traits  common 
to  all  the  first-mentioned  lakes,  I  would  specially  point  to  their 
shallowness,  their  gently  sloping  shores,  their  roundish  outline,  the 
high  temperature  of  the  surface  water  in  summer  and  the  freezing 
over  in  winter,  the  ice-erosion  on  the  shores,  the  small  trans- 
parency, and  the  yellow  or  yellow-green  colour  of  the  water  in 
summer,  due  to  the  huge  plankton-masses.  Differences  may  be 
looked  for  with  regard  to  the  chemical  composition  of  the  water 
and  bottom-mud,  owing  to  the  varying  chemical  composition  of 
the  soil  in  different  countries ;  I  anticipate  that  further  investiga- 
tions will  prove  that  the  large  amount  of  lime  carried  by  streams 
into  our  lakes  is  one  of  the  most  characteristic  peculiarities  of  the 
Danish  lakes.  On  the  other  hand,  1  am  of  opinion  that  the 
features  mentioned  in  connection  with  the  Scottish  lakes  are 
common  to  alpine  lakes  in  general.  Especially  would  I  call 
attention  to  their  great  depth  and  long  and  narrow  form,  their 
precipitous  shores,  the  sudden  flooding  of  the  rivers  and  the  rapid 
changes  in  the  level  of  the  lakes,  and  the  slight  amplitude  in  the 
annual  variation  of  the  surface  temperature.  Peculiar  to  the 
Scottish  lakes  are  the  small  transparency  and  yellowish-brown 
colour  of  the  water,  to  which  may  undoubtedly  be  added  the 
large  amount  of  humic  acid.  These  peculiarities  may  be  traced  to, 
and  are  closely  connected  with,  the  strongly-marked  climatological 
and  geological  conditions  common  to  the  whole  country. 


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41 2  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinbwrgh,  [sob 

II. 
The  Organisms,  and  their  Relations  to  the  different 

LlFB-CONDITIONS,    IN   THE   DaNISH    AND   SCOTTISH   LaKES. 

It  will  be  easily  understood  that  the  life -conditions  offered  to 
fresh-water  organisms  differ  widely  in  the  Danish  and  Scottish 
lakes  respectively,  and  that  there  are  great  differences  between 
the  vegetable  and  animal  life  in  each  case.  Generally  speaking, 
it  may  be  said  that  the  low  temperature  and  freezing  over  of  the 
Danish  lakes  in  winter  have  not  hindered  the  immigration  of 
most  of  the  fresh- water  organisms  distributed  over  the  entire 
temperate  region  of  Europe,  while  the  usually  high  summer 
temperature,  due  to  the  shallowness  of  our  lakes,  is  undoubtedly 
one  of  the  main  factors  to  which  we  must  ascribe  the  extremely 
rich  organic  life,  both  as  to  the  number  of  species  and  of  indi- 
viduals, characteristic  of  our  own  as  well  as  most  of  the  lakes  in 
the  northern  part  of  the  Central  European  plain.  We  shall  now 
consider  the  vegetable  and  animal  life  in  the  Danish  and  Scottish 
lakes  respectively,  according  to  the  three  main  regions  that  may 
be  recognised  in  every  lake,  viz.,  the  Littoral  region,  the  Pelagic 
region,  and  the  Abyssal  region.  As  far  as  possible,  we  shall 
endeavour  to  indicate  how  the  different  characters  of  the  lakes  in 
the  two  countries  have  produced  great  differences  in  their 
associations  of  animals  and  plants. 

A.  The  Danish  Lakes, 

1.  The  Littoral  Region. — Owing  to  the  gently  sloping  shores, 
the  smooth  wash  of  the  waves,  the  sandy  beaches,  often  covered 
with  decaying  vegetable  matter,  and  the  high  summer  temperature 
of  the  coastal  waters,  most  of  our  lakes  are  bordered  by  dense  and 
luxurious  bands  of  vegetation,  which  in  shallow  bays  may  attain 
a  considerable  width,  merging  imperceptibly  into  the  vegetation 
of  the  adjoining  land.  Thus  our  lakes  are  often  in  certain  parts 
bordered  by  humid  meadows,  which  in  winter  and  spring  are 
covered  by  ice  or  water,  while  in  hot  summers  they  may  be  quite 
dry,  so  that  it  is  frequently  difficult  to  say  where  the  land  ends 
and  the  lake  begins. 


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1904-6.]     ^vdy  of  the  Lakes  of  Scotland  and  Denmark.       413 

As  the  depth  of  the  lakes  increases  very  regularly  from  the 
shore  outward,  and  as  the  different  plants  are  on  the  whole  limited 
to  certain  depths,  the  vegetation  arranges  itself  in  zones  (see  fig.  2). 
For  details  I  may  refer  to  the  excellent  work  of  Professor  Warming 
(1895),*  and  will  here  restrict  myself  to  the  following  remarks. 
In  most  of  our  larger  lakes  we  have  a  narrower  or  wider  shore- 
zone,  mainly  characterised  by  Scirpvs  lacustris  and  Phragmites 
communis.  Further  out  we  shall  find  zones  of  Potaniogefon  lucens 
and  perfoliatus  and  some  other  plants,  especially  Batrachium, 
Mynophyllum,  and  Ceratophyllum,  Still  further  out,  by  dredging 
on  the  bottom,  we  find  a  zone  formed  of  Characea  and  some  Fonti- 
nalis,  which  extend  to  a  depth  of  8  or  9  metres  (25  or  30  feet), 
and  beyond  this  limit  we  usually  find  no  higher  plants.  With 
the  exception  perhaps  of  the  outer  border  of  the  Characea  zone, 
all  these  zones  of  vegetation  die  off  in  winter,  leaving  only  their 
resting  organs,  their  rhizomes,  etc.,  on  the  bottom.  The  higher 
plants  are  in  summer  nearly  always  covered  by  a  very  rich 
epiphytic  vegetation  of  blue- green  AlgSB,  Diatoms,  and  green 
Algse.  On  the  windward  side  of  the  lakes  the  vegetation  is,  of 
course,  less  abundant,  and  here  we  often  find  beaches  of  stones 
and  gravel,  without  any  higher  plants.  The  stones  themselves  in 
all  our  lakes  are  in  winter  covered  with  a  rich  brown  coating  of 
Diatoms,  which  in  summer  often  disappears,  but  in  several  lakes 
its  place  is  taken  by  a  crust  of  greyish  lime  deposited  from  the 
blue-green  Algse,  as  in  many  of  the  Swiss  lakes. 

The  plentiful  vegetation  is  the  home  of  an  abundant  and  re- 
markable animal  life :  of  the  higher  invertebrate  groups  we 
specially  notice  many  larvte  of  insects,— of  Diptera,  Phryganidse, 
Ephemerid»,  Libellulidae,  certain  Coleoptera,  and  a  few  Neuroptera 
(Sialts) ;  of  the  Crustacea  there  are  Amphipoda  {Oammams  piUex^ 
Pallasiella  quadrispinosa),  Asellus,  Daphnids  and  Copepods  in 
great  abundance;  besides  many  Rhabdocoela,  a  few  Dendrocoela 
and  Oligochffita,  very  many  Rotif era,  a  very  rich  Protozoan  fauna, 
and  a  great  many  snails  and  mussels.  Beneath  the  stones  we  also 
find  numerous  organisms,  especially  Phryganidse,  Ephemeridse,  and 
Planaria,  and  on  the  upper  sides  of  the  stones  snails  are  nearly 
everywhere  found. 

•  This  work  will  shortly  appear  in  English,  translated  by  Professor  Balfour. 


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414  Proeeeding9  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh,  [snt. 

A  stranger  unacquainted  with  our  lakes  on  reading  these  lines 
might  form  the  impression  that  the  shores  of  our  lakes  were  for 
the  most  part  inhabited  by  the  common  fresh-water  fauna  to  be 
found  in  every  shallow  pond  with  rich  yegetation.  This  impres- 
sion would  be  incorrect,  for  a  closer  examination  would  certainly 
show  that,  while  many  species  are  common  to  ponds  and  to  the 
vegetation  zone  of  the  lakes,  still  it  would  appear  that  most  of  the 
PhryganidsB,  Libellulidse,  EphemeridaB,  some  of  the  Crustacea, 
many  Planaria,  some  OligochsBta  and  Rotifera  are  quite  peculiar 
to  the  lake-shores,  and  rarely  appear  in  ponds.  Further,  it  would 
seem  that  several  species  of  snails  common  to  the  ponds  and  the 
shores  of  the  larger  lakes  are  represented  in  the  lakes  by  special 
forms  differing  from  those  found  in  ponds.  I  cannot  in  this  short 
paper  discuss  this  point  in  greater  detail,  but  will  content  myself 
by  remarking  that  the  fauna  of  the  littoral  zone  of  our  lakes  is 
on  the  whole  very  different  from  that  of  our  ditches  and  ponds. 

In  winter  the  greater  part  of  this  rich  fauna  disappears.  In 
November  and  December  many  of  the  organisms,  especially  snails 
and  some  insect  larvae,  migrate  into  deeper  water  before  the  shores 
are  covered  with  ice;  other  organisms,  for  instance  many  insect 
larvse,  go  ashore  and  burrow  holes  in  the  ground,  while  a  great 
many  other  species,  especially  Daphnids  and  Rotifers,  make  resting 
organs  *  and,  by  means  of  them,  survive  the  freezing  in  the  ice. 
Still,  there  are  numerous  organisms  which  appear  to  live  in  winter 
beneath  the  ice  as  they  do  in  summer  in  water  having  a  tempera- 
ture of  about  25*  C.  (77°  F.) ;  for  example,  Planaria,  Phryganidae, 
Amphipoda,  NepfieliSy  etc. 

2.  Tfie  Pelagic  Region, — With  regard  to  the  plankton,  I  may 
refer  to  my  Plankton  studies  (1904),  and  restrict  myself  in  this 
place  to  the  following  brief  remarks.  Our  lakes  are  nearly  always 
extremely  rich  in  plankton,  so  much  so  that  throughout  the  greater 
part  of  the  year — from  April  to  December — it  affects  the  colour 
and  transparency  of  the  water,  and  is  doubtless  one  of  the  main 
factors  in  determining  the  varying  amounts  of  oxygen  and  carbonic 
acid  dissolved  in  the  water.  It  will  thus  be  understood  that  the 
plankton  of  our  lakes — its  composition  and  its  abundance — must 
necessarily  greatly  influence  the  other  organisms  in  the  lakes. 
*  Hibernating  buds,  ephippia,  or  < 


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1904-5.]     Study  of  the  Lakes  of  Scotland  and  Denmark,       415 

With  regard  to  the  fresh-water  plankton  of  the  world,  two  r^ 
markable  characteristics  should  be  noted.  Firstly,  that  generally 
speaking  it  seems  to  be  very  homogeneous  from  pole  to  pole.  The 
plankton  of  the  Greenland  lakes  is  similar  to  that  of  the  North 
African  lakes,  only  certain  groups  of  plankton-Algae  being  apparently 
rare,  or  perhaps  entirely  absent,  near  the  pole.  From  this  general 
rule  we  know  only  a  few  exceptions,  especially  as  regards  some 
Crustacea.  Very  many  species  are  common  to  the  fresh-waters  of 
Iceland  and  those  of  North  Italy.  Secondly,  that  the  central 
domain  for  the  full  development  of  all  fresh-water  plankton  is 
apparently  in  the  temperate  zone,  and  not  in  the  tropics.  If  these 
characteristics  hold  good,  the  fresh-water  plankton  differs  essentially 
in  both  these  respects  from  all  other  associations  of  organisms  in 
the  sea  or  on  the  land.  These  two  points  cannot,  however,  be 
held  as  proved  until  the  tropical  fresh-water  plankton  has  been 
fully  explored ;  and  I  consider  it  extremely  desirable  that  one  of 
the  great  nations  having  possessions  in  the  tropics  should  despatch 
an  expedition  with  the  main  object  of  investigating  the  tropical 
fresh- water  plankton. 

The  plankton  of  our  lakes  does  not  differ,  on  the  whole,  from 
that  to  be  found  in  any  of  the  larger  lakes  in  the  northern  parts 
of  the  Central  European  plateau,  but,  as  Forel  justly  remarks,  all 
these  lakes  scarcely  merit  the  name.  In  most  of  these  compara- 
tively shallow  lakes  the  plankton  is  characterised  by  a  great 
development  of  Melosira  and  blue-green  Algae,  by  the  presence  of 
Bosmina  coregoni,  and  perhaps  by  the  occurrence  of  the  only  two 
common  species  of  the  Copepod  genus  DtaptomnSj  D,  gracilis  and 
graciloid&t.  The  Cydotdla  and  Oscillatoria,  so  characteristic  of 
alpine  lakes,  are  usually  rare,  and  often  entirely  absent,  while 
certain  species  of  Diaptomus  and  some  peculiar  species  of 
Chlorophycea,  common  in  southern  alpine  lakes,  have  never  been 
found  in  the  Central  European  plateau. 

The  plankton  of  the  Danish  lakes  differs  somewhat  perhaps 
from  that  of  the  lakes  in  the  surrounding  lowland  countries  in  the 
rich  development  of  the  Diatom  genus  StephanodisfmSy  of  the  blue- 
green  Alga  genus  Lynghya^  and  of  the  Conferva  Tnbonema 
hombydnum.  As  our  lakes  are  usually  shallow  and  the  littoral 
zone   very  extensive,  it  will  be   readily  understood  that  many 


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416  ProcudiTigB  of  Boyal  Society  of  Edinburgh,  [ 

organisms  from  the  Littoral  region  find  their  way  to  the  central 
parts  of  the  Pelagic  region,  and  that  many  of  the  forms  peculiar  to 
the  central  parts  of  the  larger  ponds,  especially  many  Chlorophycea, 
may  be  carried  by  the  rivers  into  the  Pelagic  region  of  the  lakes ; 
still,  the  mcyority  of  these  organisms  never  play  a  prominent  part 
in  the  composition  of  the  plankton. 

Out  of  about  150  plankton  organisms  which  have  been 
recognised  in  the  Danish  lakes,  very  few  appear  in  such  vast 
quantities  as  to  give  the  plankton  a  monotonous  character,  or  to 
influence  the  life-conditions  of  the  lake  during  the  greater  part  of 
the  year.  Among  these  are  Melosira  crenulata  and  granulata^ 
AiterioneUa  graciUimOy  Aphanizomenon  flos  aqtut^  Ceratium  hirun- 
dinella^  the  species  of  Diaptomua^  Daphndla  hrackyurOj 
Hi/dloilaphnia  cucuUcUa^  Botmiina  coregoni,  and  Leptodara 
kindtti.  From  April  to  December  there  are  in  almost  every 
lake,  besides  the  above-mentioned  species,  others  which  may  pre- 
dominate during  a  shorter  period.  Among  these  I  would  mention 
Fragilaria  crotonewds,  and  other  Diatoms,  Coelospkan'ium  kutzm- 
gianum,  Polycystis^  and  a  few  other  Cyanophycea,  a  very  few 
Chlorophycea  and  Protozoa,  some  Kotifera,  and  of  Crustacea 
especially  Cyclops  oithonoides,  Bosmina  longirostrisy  and  Daphnia 
hyalina.  Besides  those  organisms  whose  home  is  in  the  littoral 
zone,  or  in  the  central  parts  of  ponds,  which  are  always  rare  in 
the  Pelagic  region  of  the  lakes,  there  are  other  rare  forms  found 
in  this  region  that  only  appear  in  the  summer  months.  These 
organisms,  as  far  as  I  know,  have  apparently  reached  or  nearly 
reached  their  northern  limit  with  us;  this  applies  especially  to 
some  Rotifers,  Cyanophycea,  etc. 

Though  the  life-conditions  in  our  lakes  do  not  vary  very  much, 
still  there  is  a  good  deal  of  difference  in  the  plankton  of  the 
different  lakes:  this  refers  mostly  to  the  Diatoms  and  Cyano- 
phycea, those  two  great  groups  of  organisms  which,  in  my  opinion, 
affect  more  than  any  other  the  common  life-conditions  of  the  lake. 
As  a  general  rule,  we  may  say  that  these  two  groups  rarely  attain 
their  maximum  development  in  the  same  lake  or  simultaneously. 
Most  of  the  fresh-water  Diatoms  reach  their  highest  development 
at  a  relatively  low  temperature  (below  12*  or  10*  C.  =  54*  or  50'  F.) 
and   in  the  colder  of  our  lakes;  on  the  other  hand,  the  Cyano- 


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1904-5.]     Study  of  the  Lakes  of  Scotland  and  Denmark,       417 

phycea— except  Osdllatoria — usually  reach  their  greatest  develop- 
ment at  the  highest  summer  temperature  (between  19*  and  %S'*  C. 
=  66'  and  73*  F.)  and  in  the  warmer  lakes.  Accordingly,  we  find 
a  great  development  of  Diatoms  in  the  cold  northern  lakes  as  well 
as  in  the  southern  alpine  lakes,  and  an  almost  complete  absence  of 
the  Cyanophycea  in  both  these  localities,  the  only  exception  being 
the  OsciUatoi'ia  and  partly  AnabcBna  flos  aquos^  which  are  both 
common  in  the  alpine  lakes  of  Switzerland.  In  our  colder  lakes 
a  great  development  of  Diatoms  occurs  in  the  last  days  of  April, 
when  the  lakes  are  ice-free,  and  continues  till  June ;  then  a  great 
development  of  Ceraiium  hirundinella  sets  in,  and  in  September 
a  second  development  of  Diatoms  appears.  On  the  other  hand, 
in  our  shallower  and  warmer  lakes  the  great  development  of 
Diatoms  is  discontinued  a  little  earlier,  then  the  Cyanophycea 
appear,  and  often  predominate  throughout  the  rest  of  the  year; 
still,  in  these  lakes  also  the  development  of  Ceraiium  and  a  second 
development  of  Diatoms  occur,  but  rarely  to  such  an  extent  as  in 
the  deeper  and  colder  lakes. 

The  deep  cold  lakes  rarely  present  the  phenomenon  of  "  wasser- 
bliithe  " ;  and  if  it  appear,  it  is  only  for  a  short  time  in  June,  caused 
by  Anabcenafloa  agiue.  As  the  chromatophores  of  the  Diatoms,  as 
well  as  those  of  Ceraiium  hirundinella,  are  a  yellowish-green,  the 
colour  of  the  water  in  nearly  all  our  colder  lakes  is  also  yellow- 
green.  The  colour  of  the  water  in  the  shallower  and  warmer 
lakes  is  in  spring  also  yellow-green,  owing  to  the  first  great 
development  of  Diatoms ;  but  when  the  maximum  development  of 
the  Cyanophycea  sets  in,  the  colour  becomes  more  bluish-green, 
owing  to  the  blue-green  colour  of  the  Cyanophycea  cells,  and  the 
surface  of  the  water  on  calm  days  is  covered  by  a  thick  layer  of 
"  wasserblUthe " :  in  August  and  September,  when  the  great 
development  of  Cyanophycea  is  intermixed  with  that  of  Ceraiium 
hirundinella  and  the  second  development  of  Diatoms,  the  water  in 
these  lakes  clianges  somewhat  towards  yellow-green. 

As  a  rule,  we  may  say  that  the  colour  of  the  water  in  our  lakes 
throughout  the  greater  part  of  the  year  is  determined  by  the 
colour  of  the  plankton-organisms,  especially  by  that  of  the 
chromatophores  of  the  Diatoms  and  of  the  Cyanophycea.  Only  in 
April,  immediately  after  the  breaking  up  of  the  ice,  is  the  quantity 

PROC.  BOY.  SOC.  EDIN. — VOL.  XXV.  27 


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418  Proceedings  of  Moyal  Society  of  Ediriburgh,  [i 

of  plankton  so  insignificant  that  one  may  decide  as  to  the  original 
colour  of  our  fresh-waters :  to  determine  the  colour  of  the  water  at 
any  other  season  it  would  be  necessary  to  filter  it  This  probably 
applies  to  all  the  lakes  of  the  Central  European  plain,  but,  as  far  as 
I  am  aware,  the  colour  of  the  water  in  all  these  lakes  has  never 
been  determined  from  filtered  samples;  and  if  so,  it  must  be 
remembered  that  such  determinations  may  have  been  greatly 
influenced  by  a  foreign  factor,  viz.,  the  colour  of  the  chromato- 
phores  of  the  plankton-organisms  in  greatest  profusion  at  the  time. 
Until  the  colour  of  the  water  has  been  determined  from  filtered 
samples,  we  cannot,  in  my  opinion,  directly  compare  the  colour  of 
the  water  in  these  lakes  with  that  of  the  water  in  the  alpine  lakes, 
in  which  the  amount  of  plankton,  especially  in  the  surface  layers 
of  water,  is  altogether  insignificant  as  compared  with  our  lakes. 

In  winter  a  great  many  plankton-organisms  totally  disappear 
from  the  water:  this  is  the  case  with  certain  species  which  in 
more  southern  latitudes  occur  all  the  year  round  (Ceraiium 
htrundiriella),  but  with  us  they  produce  their  resting  organs  in 
autumn  and  disappear.  I  think  it  is  very  probable  that  those 
resting  organs  which,  before  winter  sets  in,  are  precipitated  to  the 
bottom  in  the  deepest  parts  of  the  lakes,  never  rise  to  the  surface 
again,  but  sooner  or  later  die  off,  not  finding  the  necessary 
conditions  for  germination.  In  my  opinion,  the  plankton-organisms 
of  the  following  year  are  mostly  derived  from  those  resting  organs 
which  were  deposited  in  shallower  water  nearer  the  shore,  where 
the  waves  during  the  spring  gales  sweep  the  bottom,  carrying 
away  the  resting  organs  and  scattering  them  over  the  lake.  In 
our  lakes  the  resting  organs  of  the  different  plankton-organisms 
are  most  plentiful  in  April  and  May,  after  the  heavy  storms ;  and 
I  have  shown  in  my  Plankton  paper  that  many  plankton-organisms 
are  in  May  most  abundant  near  shore,  and  that  their  distribution 
over  the  whole  lake  does  not  take  place  till  later  in  the  year. 

I  may  here  remark  that  very  probably — though  direct  observa- 
tion is  very  difficult — various  plankton-organisms,  especially 
certain  Diatoms  (TahellaHa  fenestratOy  Diatoma  elongatum),  may 
have  alternately  a  fixed  littoral  stage  and  a  free-swimming  or  free- 
floating  pelagic  stage,  and  these  two  stages  may  be  restricted  to 
certain  seasons,  the  shape  of  the  colonies  in   the   littoral  stage 


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1904-5.]     Stvdy  of  the  Lakes  of  Scotland  aiid  Denmark.       419 

(chains)  being  different  from  that  of  the  colonies  in  the  pelagic  stage 
(stars).  These  remarks  may  prove  of  some  importance,  inasmuch  as 
future  investigations  may  show  how  littoral  organisms  become  trans- 
formed into  pelagic  organisms,  and  as  they  support  the  hypothesis, 
now  commonly  adopted,  that  the  fresh-water  plankton  is  derived 
from  the  common  microscopical  littoral  and  bottom  fauna  and 
flora,  very  few  organisms  having  immigrated  directly  from  the  sea. 

As  a  character  common  to  all  our  plankton,  I  may  add  that  the 
seasonal  variations  of  the  organisms  are  very  conspicuous,  and 
more  especially  those  of  Daphnia  (Hyalodaphnia)  etunUlata, 
Bosmina  coregoniy  Asplanchna  priodonta,  Ceratium  hirundinella^ 
AgterioneUa  gracillima,  Melosira  crenvlaiOy  FragilaHa  crotonensis, 
Pediastrumy  etc.  I  shall  return  to  the  investigations  on  this  point 
after  treating  of  the  plankton  of  the  Scottish  lakes. 

I  may  point  out  that  the  vivid  red  colour  characteristic  of  many 
Crustacea  in  other  countries  is  not  with  us  very  conspicuous; 
several  Copepoda  do,  as  a  rule,  in  winter,  change  from  yellowish- 
white  into  a  deep  red  colour. 

With  regard  to  the  vertical  distribution  of  the  plankton,  I  only 
venture  to  remark  that  the  greatest  profusion  of  plankton  is  to 
be  found  in  the  upper  layers  of  water.  Like  most  of  the 
naturalists  who  have  studied  the  plankton  in  the  lakes  of  the 
northern  part  of  Central  Europe,  I  have  not  been  able  to  dis- 
tinguish any  vertical  wanderings  at  different  hours  of  the  day; 
I  venture  to  think  that  such  wandeiings  are  rather  incouFpicuous 
with  us,  but  further  investigations  with  improved  appliances  will 
be  necessary  to  decide  this  question. 

3.  The  Abyssal  Region. — In  my  paper  on  the  bottom-exploration 
of  the  Danish  lakes  (1901),  I  have  pointed  out  that  there  are 
reasons  for  fixing  the  limit  between  the  Littoral  region  and  the 
Abyssal  region  at  about  9  or  10  metres  (30  or  35  feet).  Li  speaking 
of  our  shallow  lakes  we  cannot,  of  course,  strictly  use  the  term 
** abyssal  region";  the  principal  conditions  laid  down  by  Forel 
regarding  this  region,  especially  the  uniformity  of  all  the  life- 
conditions,  are  never  fully  realised  in  the  Danish  lakes.  Still,  it 
may  be  maintained  that  we  can  speak  of  an  abyssal  fauna, 
inasmuch  as  this  is  quite  different  from  the  littoral  fauna,  and 
apparently  similar  to  the  abyssal  faima  in  deep  alpine  lakes. 


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420  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh,  [skss. 

Outside  the  9metre  (30-feet)  contour  we  find  no  plants  except 
certain  species  of  OscUlatoria  and  bottom  Diatoms;  all  higher 
vegetation  is  limited  within  this  contour,  and  the  slight  trans- 
parency of  the  water  is  probably  the  main  factor  in  determining 
this  distribution.  The  majority  of  the  snails  also  are  limited 
by  this  contour,  only  Valvata  piscinalis  extending  a  little  beyond ; 
the  pulmonary  snails  never  cross  this  boundary,  the  abyssal 
LimncBa  known  from  the  Lake  of  (Geneva  being  entirely  absent 
from  our  lakes.  The  same  contour  also  marks  the  boundary  of 
nearly  all  the  insect  larvje,  only  Sidlts  penetrating  so  far. 

The  deep  bottom  of  our  lakes  is  chiefly  inhabited  by  Pisidium^ 
the  larvffi  of  Chironomus  and  Tanypus,  the  OligochaBte 
Psammorydes  fossor,  Ostracoda  {Limnicythere  relicta  and  some 
species  of  Candona),  a  few  Planaria  {Plagio$tmna  lemani),  etc. 
The  Daphnidae  and  the  very  minute  forms  of  animal  life,  such 
as  Protozoa,  have  not  been  studied.  On  the  whole,  I  think  I  may 
say  that  our  abyssal  fauna,  though  imperfectly  known,  is  still 
undoubtedly  very  like  the  abyssal  fauna  of  the  Swiss  lakes. 

B.  Tfie  ScoUish  Lakes. 

In  comparing  the  associations  of  fresh-water  organisms  in  the 
Scottish  lakes  with  those  in  the  Danish  lakes,  we  shall  find  in 
nearly  every  particular  the  greatest  contrast. 

1.  TJie  Littoral  Region, — With  regard  to  this  region  we  may, 
in  the  first  place,  point  out  that  the  belt  of  vegetation  which 
nearly  always  surrounds  our  lakes  is  often  entirely  abeent  from 
the  larger  Scottish  alpine  lakes,  due  to  the  precipitous  or  stone- 
eovered  shores,  devoid  of  deposits  of  sand  or  decaying  vegetable 
matter :  even  river  deltas  and  other  sandy  flats  are  often  almost 
bare  of  vegetation,  partly,  I  suppose,  because  of  the  powerful 
erosion  of  the  waves,  and  partly  because  the  sudden  changes  in 
the  level  of  the  lakes  is  destructive  to  the  amphibial  plants.  In 
the  smaller  and  shallower  lakes,  for  instance  Loch  Oich,  in 
which  we  find  some  higher  vegetation  along  the  shore,  this 
vegetation  is  not  arranged  in  those  elegant  zones  so  characteristic 
of  the  Danish  lakes. 

As  far  as  I  am  aware,  the  stones  have  never  been  found 
clothed  with  blue-green  Algae ;  but  when  I  had  the  opportunity 


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1904-5.]     Stvdy  of  the  Lakes  of  Scotland  and  Denmark.       421 

of  examining  them,  they  were  always  covered  with  coatings, 
often  thick,  of  Diatoms.  I  found  such  coatings  at  the  height  of 
summer,  at  a  time  when  they  never  occur  in  our  coimtry,  owing 
to  the  high  temperature  of  the  water;  and  from  what  I  have 
observed  in  Danish  lakes,  I  suppose  they  may  possibly  also  occur 
in  the  Scottish  lakes  in  winter.  I  visited  Scotland  at  an 
extremely  dry  season  of  the  year,  when  the  rivers  were  only 
moderately  supplied  with  water  and  the  level  of  the  water  in  the 
lakes  singularly  low ;  on  the  stony  shores  and  precipitous 
mountain  sides  I  often  found  a  more  or  less  distinct  whitish 
band,  which  on  closer  examination  proved  to  be  due  to  dried 
Diatoms  and  other  plants,  the  upper  stripe  being  identical  with 
high-water  mark.  We  find  a  similar  band  on  the  stones  in  our 
lakes  in  May,  but  later  on  the  Diatoms  are  often  covered  over 
by  blue-green  Algsp.. 

The  animal  life  in  the  littoral  region  of  the  larger  Highland 
lochs  seemed  to  me,  compared  with  the  Danish  lakes,  to  be 
extremely  poor,  but  it  must  be  kept  in  mind  that  I  only 
examined  the  lakes  during  the  season  when  the  animal  life  of 
the  littoral  zone  is  almost  everywhere  at  a  minimum ;  most  of 
those  insects  which,  as  larvsB,  live  in  the  littoral  zone,  disappear 
in  summer  as  full-grown  insects,  though  they  may  possibly 
have  been  numerous  at  an  earlier  season.  Still,  the  animal 
life  whose  home  is  in  the  vegetation  zone,  living  or  resting 
on  the  vegetation,  is  rare  compared  with  our  lakes.  When 
I  had  occasion  to  examine  the  vegetation,  for  example  in  Loch 
Oich,  I  always  found  it  extremely  void  of  the  epiphytic  organisms 
so  characteristic  of  most  of  our  submerged  fresh-water  plants ;  stiU, 
in  rapid  streams  the  leaves  of  Potamogeton  natans  often  constitute 
a  support  for  a  great  many  larvae  of  Chironorrms^  Phryganea,  and 
of  the  family  Hydroptilidae  (I  suppose  ffydroptila  maclachlani), 
as  well  as  for  Stylaria  proboscidea  and  Sida  crystallina.  Along 
the  shores  of  the  lakes  I  observed  very  little  of  the  extremely 
rich  winged  insect  life,  consisting  of  swarms  of  images  of  all 
those  insects  which  as  larvse  abound  in  the  water,  and  which 
both  in  bright  simshine  and  on  calm  moonlight  nights  are 
characteristic  of  our  lakes,  and  highly  attractive  to  the  student. 
Beneath  the  stones  I  only  found  a  few  Planarians  and  one  or 


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422         Proceedings  of  Bayed  Society  of  Edivburgh,  [i 

two  species  of  EphemeridsB  and  Phryganidse.  In  the  small  bays 
of  the  lakes,  where  the  bottom  may  be  seen  well  covered  with 
vegetation,  for  example  Littordla,  MyriophyUum,  etc.,  we  often 
find  a  comparatively  rich  fauna  of  insect  larvae,  Cladocera,  and 
Rotifera;  in  such  localities  the  fauna  in  these  respects  does  not 
seem  to  be  piuch  inferior  to  that  found  in  the  Danish  lakes. 

Between  the  littoral  fauna  of  the  Highland  lakes  as  compared 
with  that  of  the  Danish  lakes,  the  main  difference  appears  to  be  in 
the  MoUusca,  which  play  a  very  prominent  part  in  our  lakes,  but 
are  extremely  rare  in  the  Highland  lakes.  Along  the  shores  of 
Loch  Ness  and  the  other  lochs  of  the  Caledonian  Canal  I  never 
found  a  single  mollusc  shell,  and  on  exploring  the  shores  only  a 
few  living  specimens  of  Limnoea  ovata  and  Planorhis  coniorius 
were  to  be  found.  Still,  I  expect  that  a  closer  examination  by  a 
malacologist  would  reveal  more  species,  and  that  in  the  shallow 
water,  in  depths  of  15  or  20  feet,  species  of  Valvata,  Bithynia, 
etc.  would  be  found,  but  all  the  larger  species  of  Planorhis  and 
Limivea  seem  to  be  entirely  wanting.  At  any  rate  the  moUuscan 
life  in  the  Highland  lakes  generally  is  so  extremely  poor  that  it 
cannot  possibly  influence  the  general  conditions  of  life  in  the  zone 
in  which  it  is  principally  found. 

This  special  difference  between  the  Scottish  and  Danish  lakes  I 
consider  to  be  due  to  the  large  amount  of  humic  acid  in  the  water 
of  the  Scottish  lakes,  to  the  total  absence  of  lime  in  the  water  and 
on  the  floor  of  these  lakes,  to  the  absence  of  all  lime-secreting 
AlgflB  and  of  lime-encrusted  blue-green  Algae  covering  the  stones,  of 
Characea,  etc.,  on  which  the  snails  in  our  lakes  principally  feed, 
and  to  the,  generally  speaking,  extremely  poor  vegetation.  That 
the  first-mentioned  is  the  principal  cause  is  evident  from  the  fact 
that  even  in  lakes  rich  in  vegetation  the  molluscan  life  is  greatly 
inferior  to  that  in  the  Danish  lakes. 

2.  Tfie  Pelagic  Begion, — The  investigations  of  Mr  James 
Murray,*  assistant  on  the  Lake  Survey  staff,  of  Messrs  West,  and 
my  own  cursory  examinations,  have  shown  that  there  is  a  great 
resemblance,  and  at  the  same  time  a  great  difference,  between  the 
plankton  of  the  Scottish  and  of  the  Danish  lakes.  Nearly  all  the 
common  plankton-organisms  of  the  Scottish  lakes  also  occur  in  the 
*  I  desire  to  express  my  thanks  to  Mr  Murray  for  information  supplied  to  me. 


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1904-5.]    Stvdy  of  the  Lakes  of  Scotland  and  Denmark.       423 

Danish  lakes,  while,  on  the  other  hand,  many  forms  found  in  the 
Danish  lakes  have  not  hitherto  heen  ohserved  in  the  Scottish 
lakes.  I  may  here  give  a  short  account  of  the  commoner 
plankton-forms,  hased  on  the  investigations  above  referred  to. 

The  Cyanophycea  play  an  altogether  inferior  part  in  the  com- 
position of  the  plankton  in  the  larger  Highland  lakes,  the  only 
rather  common  forms  being  Anabcenafloa  aqtuB  and  Codosphcertum 
ncegdianum.  With  regard  to  Lynghya  and  Oscillaioria  further 
explorations  may  give  information,  but  as  Mr  Murray  often  speaks 
of  "  filamentous  Algae  in  abundance  "  they  are  probably  common. 

Of  the  Diatoms,  it  may  be  pointed  out  that  Melosira,  as  in 
many  other  mountain  lakes,  seems  to  be  relatively  rare,  and 
never  forms  those  huge  masses  of  plankton  found  in  tlie  Danish 
and  other  lowland  lakes.  Stephanodiscus  adrma  has  not  yet  been 
observed  as  a  plankton-organism ;  and  Cyclotdla,  which  has  often 
been  considered  as  characteristic  of  alpine  lakes,  was  not  so  common 
as  might  have  been  expected,  yet  I  suppose  that  closer  examina- 
tion at  other  seasons  may  prove  that  it  is  abundant ;  Fragilaria 
erotonensis  also  seems  to  be  rare  in  the  Scottish  lakes.  The 
commonest  forms  are  : — Asterionella  gracilHma,  Tabellaria  fenes- 
irata,  var.  asteriortellotdes,  T,  flocculosa  (in  chains),  and  a  remark- 
ably large  number  of  bottom  and  shore  Diatoms  (Naviculoidese  and 
Surirelloidefie). 

With  regard  to  the  Chlorophycea,  Chodat  has  observed  that 
nearly  all  the  small  forms  belonging  to  the  Euchlorophycea  are 
warm-water  plants,  having  their  home  in  small  ponds,  the  water 
of  which  is  rich  in  disintegrated  organic  matter ;  in  the  Pelagic 
region  of  the  greater  lakes  they  are  nearly  all  rare,  and  must  be 
considered  as  merely  chance  visitors,  introduced  by  streams  and 
rivers,  soon  finding  their  graves  in  the  Pelagic  region  of  the  lakes : 
to  this  rule  we  find  only  a  few,  but  very  peculiar,  exceptions. 
A  study  of  the  Chlorophycea  in  the  Danish  lakes  has  shown  this 
view  of  Chodat's  to  be  quite  correct :  as  all  our  lakes  are  shallow, 
and  the  water  in  summer  very  warm,  they  should,  according  to 
Chodat,  be  extremely  rich  in  Chlorophycea,  and  this  is  exactly 
the  case.  With  regard  to  the  Scottish  lakes,  we  find  some  very 
remarkable  features.  All  the  Euchlorophycea  seem,  from  my  own 
observations,  to  be  rare,  and  Messrs  West  (1904,  p.  554)  have 


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424  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh,  [smb. 

lilso  pointed  out  the  very  "remarkable  scarcity  of  many  of  the 
free-swimming  Protococcoideae."  Still,  it  must  be  remembered 
that  these  organisms,  judging  from  Chodat's  investigations,  eould 
by  no  means  be  expected,  all  these  plants,  except  Sphoerocystis  and 
a  few  others,  being  extremely  rare  in  lakes :  the  numerous  species 
recorded  by  Lemmermann,  Bruno  Schroder,  and  others,  all  inhabit 
the  shallower  and  warmer  lakes  (see  West,  p.  564). 

On  the  other  hand,  the  explorations  of  Messrs  West  have  proved 
that  the  Desmidiacea  play  a  most  prominent  and  remarkable  part 
in  the  Pelagic  region  of  a  considerable  number  of  the  larger  lakes. 
The  authors  state  that  the  Scottish  phytoplankton  "  is  unique  in 
the  abundance  of  its  Desraids.  No  known  plankton  can  compare 
with  it  in  the  richness  and  diversity  of  the  Desmid  flora."  In  the 
present  state  of  our  knowledge,  I  consider  the  presence  of  these 
numerous  Desmids  to  be  one  of  the  most  peculiar  traits  in  the 
composition  of  the  plankton  of  the  Scottish  lakes.  As  far  as  I 
know,  very  few  of  them  have  hitherto  been  recorded  in  the  Pelagic 
region  of  any  of  the  greater  European  lakes,  and  their  common 
occurrence  is  quite  the  reverse  of  what  might  have  been  expected 
from  Chodat^s  and  my  own  observations.  In  the  other  European 
lakes  only  two  species,  viz.,  Staurastrum  gracHe  and  S,  paradoxum^ 
are  common.  ITie  manner  in  which,  I  think,  we  may  endeavour 
to  account  for  their  frequent  occurrence  will  be  referred  to  after 
the  plankton  groups  have  been  treated  of. 

As  the  Flagellata,  Heliozoa,  and  Infusoria  have  not  hitherto 
been  specially  studied,  and  I  myself  have  had  no  opportunity  of 
visiting  the  lakes  in  the  season  during  which  many  of  the  Flagellata 
and  Infusoria  are  generally  most  abundant,  I  do  not  venture  to 
deal  with  these  groups  in  detail,  but  restrict  myself  to  the  follow- 
ing remarks.  I  have  found  Diiwhryum  in  all  the  lakes  explored, 
and  in  a  few  instances  also  species  of  the  genera  Mallomonas  and 
Gymnodinium,  Geratium  hirundinella  seems  to  be  common,  and 
the  frequent  occurrence  of  Clathndina  is  very  remarkable — usually 
empty  shells,  for  only  once,  I  think,  did  I  see  a  living  animal 
As  far  as  one  may  judge  from  the  investigations  of  Mr  James 
Murray,  it  seems  that  the  plankton  Rotifers  are  quite  similar  to 
those  in  other  countries,  but  the  absence  of  Madigocerra  capudna 
is  remarkable. 


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1904-5.]     Stvdy  of  the  Lakes  of  Scotland  and  Denmark.       425 

With  regard  to  the  geographical  distribution,  none  of  the 
plankton-organisms  present  points  of  so  much  interest  as  the 
Crustacea.  It  has  been  mentioned  that  the  plankton-organisms 
have  an  extremely  wide  distribution,  and  may  be  regarded  as 
cosmopolitan ;  most  of  the  exceptions  belong  to  the  Copepoda 
and  Cladocera.  Steuer  (1901)  was  the  first  to  draw  attention  to 
the  fact  that  the  Diaptomidae  and  some  of  the  plankton  Cladocera 
seem  to  have  well-marked  areas  of  distribution.  Steuer's  views 
have  been  corroborated  and  modified  or  enlarged  by  the  excellent 
investigations  of  Ekman  (1904)  in  the  northern  part  of  Sweden; 
Ekman's  results  fully  accord  in  all  the  main  points  with  my  observa- 
tions in  the  Danish  lakes  (1904).  Having  referred  to  these 
papers,  I  shall  here  restrict  myself  to  those  points  having  special 
reference  to  the  fauna  of  the  Scottish  and  Danish  lakes. 

It  may  be  regarded  as  a  fact  that  there  exists  a  peculiar  associa- 
tion of  Arctic  plankton  Crustacea,  mainly  restricted  to  the  Arctic  or 
North  European  lakes.  This  association  is  characterised  by  the 
common  occurrence  of  Holopedium  gihherum^  Daphnia  hyalina,  Bo$- 
mina  obtusirostris,  Bythotrephes  longimanuSy  Diaptomus  lactniatfiSy 
the  genus  Ileterocope  (perhaps),  and  certain  other  species  of 
Copepoda.  Bosmina  coregoni,  as  well  as  B,  longirostris  and 
BycUodaphnia  cucidlata^  are  almost  entirely  absent ;  these  are  the 
particular  forms,  besides  several  others,  especially  Diaptomus 
gracilis  and  D.  graciloides,  Daphnella  brachyura,  I^ptodora  kindtii, 
which  constitute  the  huge  masses  of  zooplankton  in  the  Central 
European  plains.  Of  the  sub-arctic  association,  some  of  the  species, 
especially  Diaptomus  laciniatus,  are  also  common  in  the  alpine 
lakes  of  Switzerland  and  other  lakes  in  the  Central  European  alpine 
zone,  but  most  of  them  {Holopedium  giblteruvi,  Bosmina  obttud- 
rostris)  are  never,  or  only  exceptionally,  found  there.  It  seems 
to  me  that  these  southern  alpine  lakes  are  mostly  inhabited  by 
the  same  species  which  are  characteristic  of  the  Central  European 
plains,  and  that  the  arctic  elements  are  on  the  whole  subordinate. 

The  following  facts  may  be  briefly  stated,  from  the  explorations 
of  Mr  James  Murray,  and  the  exceUent  papers  of  Mr  Scourfield 
and  Mr  Scott  quoted  in  the  Bibliography,  as  well  as  from  my 
own  investigations : — 

Holopedium   gibberum  is   very  common,   and   frequently   "so 


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426  Proceedings  of  Boycd  Society  of  Edinbwrgh.  [sbsb. 

abuudant  that  it  chokes  up  the  nets  in  a  short  time,  and  makes 
it  impossible  to  get  a  fair  proportion  of  the  other  animals  present" 
(Murray,  1904a,  p.  42);  it  may  be  added  that  the  animals  are 
extremely  large. 

Of  the  genus  Daphuia  the  common  species  is  Daphnia  hycdina 
in  different  varieties  {lacustrts,  galeatOj  etc.).  D.  {Hydlodaphrda) 
cucuUcda  is  very  rare,  and  only  found  in  one  locality  (a  lowland 
lake).  Bosmina  arregrmi  is  almost  entirely  absent,  and  it  seems 
as  though  the  genus  Bosmina  were  only  represented  by  one  species, 
B,  obtusiivstris.  BythotrepJies  Longimanua  occurs  generally  in 
the  Highland  lakes,  and  is  extremely  large.  Leptodora  kindtii  and 
Daphndla  bracJiyura  are  common  in  nearly  all  the  lakes.  Of  the 
Copepoda,  the  Diaptomidae  are  represented  by  D,  gracilis,  the  com- 
monest species,  as  well  as  by  D,  laciniattis,  D.  laticeps,  and  the 
peculiar  D.  toiei'zejskii ;  of  the  Cyclops,  C.  strenuus  is  the  main  form. 

As  will  readily  be  seen,  the  common  occurrence  of  Leptodora 
kindtii  and  Daphnella  brachyura  is  the  only  feature  that  gives 
the  otherwise  almost  entirely  sub-arctic  association  of  Scottish 
plankton  Crustacea  a  more  southern  facies.  Otherwise  we  may 
point  to  a  very  close  connection  between  the  associations  of 
plankton  Crustacea  in  the  Scottish  and  the  sub-arctic  lakes — a  con- 
nection much  closer  than  that  between  the  plankton  Crustacea  of 
the  Scottish  lakes  and  of  the  lakes  of  the  Central  European  plain 
and  of  Switzerland.  This  result  is  only  what  might  have  been 
expected,  considering  the  situation  of  the  Scottish  lakes  and  the 
geological  structure  of  the  country,  but  still  it  seems  to  me  not 
without  interest. 

With  regard  to  the  other  plankton-organisms,  I  shall  only  point 
out  that  Cortfhra  plumicomis  has  been  found  by  Mr  James 
Murray  as  a  plankton-organism  in  Loch  Oich,  and  that  different 
species  of  Hydrachnids  are  common  in  most  of  the  lakes. 

As  regards  the  quantity  of  plankton  in  the  Highland  lakes,  it 
can  only  be  regarded  as  extremely  poor  when  compared  with  that 
in  the  Danish  lakes.  It  appears  that  the  plankton  in  the  larger 
Highland  lakes  affects  the  transparency  or  colour  of  the  water  only 
to  a  very  slight  extent,  therefore  the  plankton  can  only  slightly 
influence  the  general  conditions  of  life  for  all  the  other  organisms 
in   these   lakes.     Only   in   small   lakes   has   Mr   James    Murray 


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1904-6.]     StvAy  of  the  Lakes  of  Scotland  and  Denmark.       427 

observed  the  transparency  and  the  colour  of  the  water  to  be 
inflaenced  by  the  plankton.  Further,  I  should  think  it  is 
exceptional  to  find  in  the  Highland  lakes  a  single  plankton - 
organism  giving  the  entire  plankton  the  unifoi-m  monotonous 
character  frequently  observed  in  our  lakes  due  to  Melosira^ 
Aphanizomenon,  and  others.  And  it  will  be  easily  understood 
thiEit  the  marked  changes  which  almost  invariably  take  place  in 
our  lakes  when  the  great  development  of  Diatoms  ceases  and  the 
maximum  development  of  the  Cyanophycea  sets  in  are  never  so 
conspicuous  in  the  Scottish  lakes.  Finally,  I  am  inclined  to 
think  that  many  of  the  plankton-organisms  in  the  Scottish  lakes 
show  a  less  marked  maximum  and  minimum  development  than 
is  the  case  in  our  lakes ;  and  should  further  explorations  confirm 
this  supposition,  the  fact  must  be  ascribed  to  the  much  lesser 
amplitude  in  the  annual  variation  of  temperature  in  the  Highland 
lakes,  where  the  water  never  attains  those  very  low  or  very  high 
temperatures  at  which  life  in  an  active  form,  owing  to  the 
structure  of  the  organisms,  becomes  impossible ;  the  organisms 
may  therefore  not  be  forced  to  form  resting  organs,  but  may 
remain  in  the  layers  of  water  as  free  swimmers. 

According  to  the  observations  of  Mr  James  Murray  and  myself, 
the  seasonal  variations  of  the  plankton-organisms  are  never  so 
conspicuous  in  the  Scottish  as  in  the  Danish  lakes.  I  have 
pointed  out  (1900)  that  in  several  very  diflferent  plankton- 
organisms  the  longitudinal  axis  is  simultaneously  lengthened 
during  summer  and  shortened  during  winter,  and  that  the 
formation  of  all  the  various  structures  (spines,  floating  apparatus, 
etc.)  considered  necessary  to  enable  the  organism  to  float  are  most 
distinctly  visible  in  summer-forms  and  summer-individuals.  I 
also  pointed  out  that  the  explanation  must  be  looked  for  in  the 
varying  external  conditions,  which,  so  to  speak,  compel  the 
organisms  to  vary  regularly  in  accordance  therewith.  I  ascribed 
these  variations  mainly  to  the  annual  changes  in  the  specific 
gravity  of  the  water,  occasioned  by  the  regular  annual  fluctuations 
in  the  temperature,  starting  from  the  supposition  that  if  the 
velocity  of  the  falling  motion  of  the  plankton-organisms  be  not 
the  same  at  all  seasons,  the  organisms  must,  in  order  to  exist  as 
such  during  the  season  when  the  velocity  of  the  falling  motion  is 


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428  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh.  [ 

invariably  greatest,  of  necessity  be  capable  of  developing  properties 
tending  to  reduce  the  velocity  of  the  falling  motion.  Knowing,  as 
we  now  do,  that  the  spherical  form  in  all  bodies  has  the  quickest 
falling  velocity,  and  seeing  that  so  many  organisms,  with  the 
increasing  temperature  and  decreasing  specific  gravity  of  the  water, 
often  obviously  became  lengthened  in  form,  the  thought  struck  me 
that  very  probably  the  seasonal  variations  in  the  specific  gravity 
of  the  water  were  the  main  factor  in  determining  the  seasonal 
variations  in  the  shape  of  the  organisms.  Subsequently  Ostwald 
(1903)  pointed  out  that  the  lengthening  of  the  longitudinal 
axis  with  increase  of  temperature,  and  the  shortening  of  the 
longitudinal  axis  with  decrease  of  temperature,  cannot  be 
attributed  solely  to  the  variations  in  the  specific  gravity  of  the 
water  consequent  upon  the  rising  temperature  in  spring  and  falling 
temperature  in  autumn ;  he  draws  attention  to  the  fact  that  the 
oscillations  in  the  specific  gravity  of  the  water  with  a  temperature 
varying  from  0'  to  24'  C.  (32'  to  75"  F.)  are  too  slight  to  account 
for  these  great  seasonal  variations  in  the  form  of  the  organisms. 
He  agrees  with  me  in  taking  it  for  granted  that  these  seasonal 
variations  in  so  many  very  different  plankton-organisms  can  only 
be  due  to  variations  in  the  external  conditions,  but  he  believes 
them  to  be  due  to  the  varying  viscosity  of  the  water,  which,  like 
the  specific  gravity,  is  dependent  on  the  oscillations  in  the 
temperature  of  the  water,  while  the  variations  in  viscosity  are  far 
more  perceptible  than  the  variations  in  specific  gravity.  I  think 
that  Ostwald's  modification  of  my  views  is  quite  correct. 

The  conclusions  arrived  at  by  Ostwald  and  myself  have  been 
greatly  strengthened  by  recent  observations.  It  is  evident  that  if 
tlie  seasonal  variations  are  occasioned  by  variations  in  the  external 
conditions,  in  accordance  with  the  variations  in  the  temperature  of 
the  water,  these  seasonal  variations  must  be  most  conspicuous  in 
those  lakes  having  the  most  pronounced  annual  variations  in 
temperature.  It  has  now  been  shown  that  the  seasonal  variations 
are  very  conspicuous  in  a  great  many  lakes  in  Denmark,  South 
Sweden,  and  North  Germany,  and  many  interesting  facts  regarding 
these  seasonal  variations,  the  sinking  of  short-spined  individuals 
during  the  early  summer  months,  etc.  (Max  Voigt,  1904,  p.  113), 
have  been  brought  to  light  by  the  explorers  in  these  countries. 


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1904-5.]     Study  of  the  Lakes  of  Scotland  and  Denmark,       429 

with  their  shallow  and,  in  summer,  warm  lakes.  On  the  other 
hand,  from  Ekman's  explorations  in  the  northern  alpine  lakes  in 
the  Sarek,  we  know  that  the  seasonal  variations  are  by  no  means 
so  conspicuous  there  as  in  the  more  southerly  parts  of  Sweden. 
Brehm  (1902)  arrives  at  a  similar  result  as  regards  the  Daphnids 
in  the  Achensee,  North  Tyrol.  From  my  own  observations  in  the 
Icelandic  lakes  (which  will  be  published  shortly),  I  know  that  the 
seasonal  variations  are  there  extremely  inconspicuous,  and  now 
the  investigation  of  the  Scottish  lakes  has  given  the  same  result. 
From  these  facts,  and  in  accordance  with  the  observations  of 
Ostwald  and  myself,  we  may  conclude  that  the  seasonal  variations 
are  of  slight  importance  in  arctic  and  cold  alpine  lakes,  while,  as 
might  have  been  expected,  they  are  conspicuous  in  the  lakes  of 
the  Central  European  plain,  characterised  by  the  great  annual 
variations  in  the  temperature  of  the  water.  In  this  connection  it 
will  be  seen  how  interesting  a  thorough  exploration  of  the  great 
tropical  lakes  would  prove  to  be. 

According  to  the  published  papers  by  the  investigators  of  the 
alpine  lakes  and  the  lakes  of  the  European  plains,  it  may  be  con- 
sidered as  a  general  rule  that  many  animals  always  display  more 
vivid  colours  in  the  cold  alpine  lakes  than  in  the  warm  lakes  of 
the  plains,  and  that  the  animals  retain  their  bright  colours  in  the 
alpine  lakes  throughout  the  year,  whereas  in  the  lakes  of  the 
plains  the  vivid  colouring  is  only  observed  in  winter  when  the 
temperature  is  low.  Brehm  supposes  that  the  red  colouring  of 
alpine  organisms  is  a  means  of  protection  against  the  cold,  and 
gives  good  reasons  for  this  supposition.  The  examination  of  the 
plankton  in  the  Scottish  lakes  has  now  shown  that  the  Crustacea, 
for  instance  Daphnia  hyalina^  Diaptomus  gracilis,  Gydops  strenuus, 
as  in  other  alpine  lakes,  are  frequently  in  summer  of  a  deep  red 
or  deep  blue  colour ;  in  my  own  country  I  have  only  seen  these 
vivid  colours  in  winter,  and  never  in  the  summer  months. 

With  regard  to  the  vertical  distribution  of  the  plankton-organisms 
iu  the  Scottish  lakes  we  know  very  little,  and  further  observations 
on  this  point  are  necessary.  It  is  an  interesting  fact  that  what 
is  known  of  the  vertical  movements  of  the  plankton  shows  that 
these  movements  are  very  conspicuoiis  in  the  alpine  lakes,  but 
inconspicuous,  and  often  hardly  traceable,  in   the  lakes  of  the 


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430  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh,  [sbss. 

plains.     Seeing,  however,  that  no  thorough  investigations  have  as 
yet  been  carried  out  on  this  point  in  the  lakes  of  the  plains,  or 
the  facts   have   not   been  sufficiently  elucidated,  I  consider  any 
discussion  on  this  subject  as  rather  premature.     Mr  James  Murray 
has  told  me  that  at  night  a  very  great  accumulation  of  plankton 
takes  place  in  the  surface  waters  of  the  Highland  lakes,  and  we 
may  therefore  conclude  that   very  conspicuous  movements  occur 
at  different  times  of  the  day  and  night ;  in  this  particular  also  the 
plankton  of  the  Highland  lakes  agrees  with  that  of  other  alpine  lakes. 
Before  leaving  the  plankton  of  the  Scottish  lakes  I  wish  to  draw 
attention  to  a  very  peculiar  feature.     The  singular  abundance  of 
Desmids  has  been  already  mentioned,  and  needs  an  explanation. 
To  suppose  that  the  Scottish  lakes  should  be  the  only  known  home 
of  an  entire  plankton-flora  of  Desmids  seems  to  me,  at  first  sight, 
from  my  knowledge  of  fresh-water  planktons,  on  the  whole  an  odd 
idea.     I  presume   that   the   occurrence  of  the   Desmids   in   the 
plankton  must  be  regarded  in  connection  with  the  appearance  of 
a  good  many  other  organisms  in  the  Pelagic  region  of  the  lakes ; 
for   instance,  Polyphemun  pedicidus,  Sida  crystcUlinOy   Chydorus 
iphcericuB,  ClathrulinOj  several  Rotifers,  and  very  many  Diatoms 
of  the  sub-orders   Naviculoidece  and   SurirelloidecB.      All   these 
organisms  may  be  considered  as  littoral  forms,  washed  out  by  the 
waves  from  the  precipitous  hillsides,  blown  out  by  the  wind  from 
the  few  shallow  bays,  and  carried  out  into  the  deeper  part  of  the 
lakes  by  rivers  and  currents.     Knowing  that  the  original  home  of 
the  Desmids  is  in  peat-moors,  and  that  the  sloping  sides  of  the 
hills  in  Scotland   are  almost   everywhere  covered  with   mosses, 
which  are  quite  moist  for  the  greater  part  of  the  year,  and  in  many 
places  all  the  year  round,  the  thought  immediately  struck  me  that 
the  plankton  Desmids  must  have  been  originally  derived  from  the 
hillsides,  or  from  tarns  and  moors  on  the  hilltops,  and,  associated 
with  the  littoral  species  above  named,  have  been  carried  by  the 
rivers  out  into  the  centre  of  the  lakes.     Later  on,  when  I  read 
the  most  interesting   paper  of   Messrs  West,   I   observed   that, 
according   to  these  gentlemen,    the   plankton    Desmids    of    the 
Scottish  lakes  "are  also  known  to  us  from  the  bogs  and  rocky 
pools  of  north-west  Scotland  and  the  Outer   Hebrides"  (1904, 
p.  553).     Further,  the  authors  report   the  very  interesting  fact 


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1904-5.]     Stvdy  of  the  Lakes  of  Scotland  and  Denmark,       431 

that  "the  majority  of  the  species  of  Staurastrum  and  Arthro- 
desmwf  which  occur  iu  the  plankton  are  remarkable  for  their  long 
spines,  or  long  processes  with  spinate  apices.  Even  those  species 
which  are  normally  long-spined  increase  the  length  of  their  spines 
when  in  the  plankton"  (1904,  p.  554). 

From  the  results  of  these  thorough  explorations  I  think  we  may 
conclude,  on  the  one  hand,  that  the  home  of  the  plankton  Desmids 
is  in  fact  in  the  pools  and  moss-covered  sides  of  the  hills,  from 
which  the  plankton-flora  of  the  lakes  is  nowadays  recruited,  and, 
on  the  other  hand,  that  some  of  those  forms  which,  according  to 
their  primeval  structure,  were  best  adapted  to  plankton-life,  are 
now  in  fact,  under  the  new  conditions,  about  to  develop  those 
processes  (spines,  etc.),  common  to  very  many  exclusively  plankton- 
organisms,  that  we  always  regard  as  a  floating  apparatus.  The 
adoption  of  a  pelagic  life  by  the  Desmids — a  process  really  going 
on  as  regards  so  many  species  in  the  Scottish  lakes — may  be  more 
easily  understood  when  we  remember  that  these  lakes,  unlike  most 
other  large  lakes,  offer  one  of  those  great  life-conditions  which  so 
many  of  the  Desmids  seem  to  require,  viz.,  peaty  water  rich  in 
humic  acid.  What  I  have  here  set  forth  is,  of  course,  only  a 
theory,  but  one  which  may  perhaps  prove  a  starting-point  for 
further  investigations. 

3.  Ths  Abyssal  Region,  —Our  knowledge  of  the  abyssal  fauna  of 
the  Highland  lakes  is  at  the  present  time  very  deficient.  Before 
my  arrival  in  Scotland,  Mr  James  Murray  had  been  drclging  a 
good  deal,  especially  in  Loch  Ness.  As  mentioned  in  the  Intro- 
duction, opportunities  were  afforded  me  for  dredging  in  Loch 
Lochy,  Loch  Oich,  and  Loch  Ness,  and  from  a  good  steamer  I 
used  all  the  various  apparatus  employed  in  deep-sea  trawling.  I 
thus,  of  course,  obtained  some  idea  of  the  abyssal  fauna  in  the 
lakes  mentioned,  but  still  I  consider  my  impressions  to  be  altogether 
insufficient,  and  the  results  at  which  I  have  arrived  need  in  a 
great  measure  to  be  tested  and  corrected  by  further  explorations. 

The  distance  from  shore  at  which  the  alluvial  deposits  settle  on 
the  bottom  depends  in  the  first  instance,  of  course,  upon  the 
declivity  of  the  shore.  As  the  shores  of  Loch  Lochy  and  Loch 
Ness  are  very  precipitous,  with  depths  of  300  to  500  feet  only  a 
few  hundred  yards  from  shore,  I  suppose  that  the  alluvial  deposits 


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432  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Bdiniurgh,  [sea 

settle  on  the  bottom  only  at  remarkably  great  depths.     It  is  very 
difficult  to  dredge  upon  these  almost  vertical  planes ;  and  in  the 
few  instances  where  a  dredging  gave  any  result,  I  never  got  any 
finer  alluvial  deposits,  but  only  stones  and  gravel,  upon  which  I 
never  found  any  sign  of  animal  life.     At  the  present  moment  we 
have  no  knowledge  of  the  animal  life  on  the  precipitous  sides  of 
the  lochs  from  100  to  about  300  feet,  but  I  expect  that  further 
investigations  will  show  that  it   is   extremely  poor.      Mr  James 
Murray  has  shown  me  samples  from  300  feet  in  Loch  Ness,  con- 
taining many  insect  larvsB,  especially   Perlidee,    Coleoptera,  and 
EphemeridflB,  as  well  as  many  Daphnidce  and  Rotifera.     In  the 
dredgings  in   Loch   Ness   I   never  found   these   animals,  and  I 
conclude  that,  especially  during  the  spring,  they  will  be  found  to 
accumulate  in  the  abyssal  region.     These  forms  must  certainly  be 
regarded    as    having  fallen   down   the   precipitous  sides   of  the 
bordering   hills,  washed  out  by  the  waves,  and  carried  out  into 
deep  water.     Further,  I  think  it  quite  probable  that  the  rivers, 
especially  after  heavy   rains,   may   be  able   to  sweep  away  the 
river-fauna  from  the  rocks  and  carry  it  out  into  the  lakes  so  far 
from  shore  that  it  does  not  subside  until  depths  exceeding  200  or 
300   feet   have  been   reached.     Further  observations  may  show 
whether  this  littoral  fauna  of  the  great  depths  will  be  starved  out, 
or  will  be  able  to  reach  its  primary  home  again. 

I  had  hoped  to  find  in  the  lakes  of  the  Caledonian  Canal  traces 
of  the  fauna  of  rehct  animals,  first  discovered  by  I«oven  in  the 
great  Swedish  lakes,  subsequently  observed  in  Finland,  Norway, 
Iceland,  and  North  America,  and  in  recent  years  also  in  Germany 
and  Denmark  (1902).  I  had  expected  to  find  both  the  relicts 
common  in  all  these  countries  (Mysis  relicta,  PaUasiella  qttadri- 
spinosaj  Pontoporeia  afflnis\  and  also  those  whose  home  is  in  very 
deep  and  very  cold  water  (Idothea  eniomon  and  Gamtnarus 
loricatus),  hitherto  recorded  only  from  the  Swedish  lakes  and 
Lake  Ladoga.  It  is  most  extraordinary  that  the  deep  fauna  of 
the  great  Swedish  lakes  has  never  been  investigated  since  Loven 
drew  the  attention  of  the  entire  scientific  world  to  the  existence 
of  marine  animals  in  their  great  depths.  I  thought  that  the 
sources  of  knowledge  regarding  this  peculiar  fauna  could  not  have 
been    exhausted    with    Loven's    discoveries,    and    that    modem 


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1904-6.]     Stvdy  of  the  Lakes  of  Scotland  and  Denmark,       433 

appliances  would  have  brought  to  light  quite  new  fresh- water 
organisms.  I  hoped,  further,  that  the  explorations  might  reveal 
some  of  those  species  found  by  Forel  in  the  deep  water  of  the 
Lake  of  Geneva — Niphargvs  fordi,  Asdlvs  fordi^  Limncea 
profunda  and  abysaicola^  etc.  It  will  thus  be  understood  that  I 
began  the  deep  bottom  dredgings  with  great  expectations,  which 
were,  of  course,  nourished  by  Mr  James  Murray's  discoveries, 
larvae  of  PerKdse  and  EphemeridsB  never  having  previously  been 
found  in  the  abyssal  region.  All  my  expectations,  however,  fell 
short  of  realisation.  While  I  think  it  necessary  to  emphasise  the 
fact  that  the  explorations  hitherto  carried  on  have  been  quite 
fragmentary,  yet  I  consider  it  most  extraordinary  that  with  our 
excellent  apparatus  we  were  unable  to  procure  one  specimen  either 
of  the  relict  fauna  or  of  the  deep-water  fauna  taken  by  Forel  in 
the  Lake  of  Geneva.  I  may  add,  that  in  the  exploration  of  Loch 
Ness  I  used  the  very  same  net  with  which  I  have  taken  the  relict 
fauna  in  our  Danish  lakes. 

The  genuine  abyssal  fauna  of  the  Highland  lakes  appears  to  be 
poor,  consisting  mainly  of  Chironomus  larvsB,  a  very  few  species  of 
OligochsBta,  Ostracoda,  and  Pisidium  (probably  Plagiostoma 
lemani  was  found  in  Loch  Ness),  and  the  number  of  individuals 
seemed  to  me  inconsiderable.  The  microscopic  abyssal  fauna  is  im- 
perfectly known;  but  seeing  that  many  Rhizopods  are  most  common 
in  peaty  water,  I  think  it  probable  that  further  investigations  will 
reveal  a  great  many  species  as  inhabitants  of  the  abyssal  region  of 
the  Scottish  lakes.  As  probably  pointing  to  the  cause  of  the 
apparently  extreme  poverty  of  organic  life  in  the  abyssal  region  of 
the  Scottish  lakes,  I  would  draw  attention  to  a  fact  well  known 
in  our  country,  viz.,  that  in  all  our  peat-moors  the  animal  life  at 
the  bottom  of  the  moors  is  extremely  poor ;  we  find  only  a  few 
snails,  larvae  of  Chironomidse,  while  the  Oligochaeta  are  often 
almost  entirely  absent,  and  only  the  Khizopods  are  numerous. 
For  my  part  I  have  always  thought  that  this  must  be  due  to  the 
large  amount  of  humic  acid,  which  acts  as  poison  to  many 
animals;  and  if  this  be  the  true  explanation,  it  may  indicate  the 
principal  reason  why  the  abyssal  region  of  the  Scottish  lakes  is  so 
thinly  populated,  the  peaty  water  being  a  hindrance  to  the 
development  of  life. 

PROC.  BOY.  800.  EDIN. — VOL.  XXV.  28 


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434  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  JBdinburgh.         [gns. 

Once  more  calling  to  mind  the  mist- wrapped,  moes-covered 
Scottish  hills,  with  their  peaty  moors  and  precipitous  sides,  I 
think  we  must  seek  the  main  cause  of  the  general  extreme  poverty 
of  animal  and  vegetable  life  in  the  Highland  lakes  in  the  general 
geographical  conditions  of  the  country  itself. 

From  this  sketch  of  the  organic  life  in  the  Danish  and  Scottish 
lakes  it  will  appear  that  the  differences  are  extremely  great  I 
suppose  that  what  has  been  said  with  regard  to  the  life  in  the 
Danish  lakes  will  hold  good  also  as  to  the  lakes  of  the  northern 
part  of  the  Central  European  plain.  On  the  other  hand,  the  very 
imperfect  sketch  I  have  given  of  the  Highland  lakes  can  by  no 
means  be  taken  as  applicable  also  to  alpine  lakes  in  general.  It 
would  indeed  have  been  fortunate  could  we  have  drawn  a  com- 
parison between  the  Highland  lakes  of  Scotland,  their  nature  and 
their  organic  life,  and  the  Norwegian  alpine  lakes,  many  of  which 
are  similar  in  some  respects;  but  this  is  impossible,  since  the 
Norwegian  lakes  have  been  very  insufficiently  explored,  and  we 
can  only  compare  the  Scottish  lakes  with  the  southern  alpine 
lakes,  especially  the  well-explored  Swiss  lakes.  I  may  refer  to  the 
admirable  works  of  Forel  (1892-1902),  Zschokke  (1900),  and 
others,  relating  to  the  fauna  and  flora  of  the  Swiss  lakes.  Any- 
one who  has  read  these,  and  knows  something  of  the  life  in  the 
Scottish  lakes,  will  be  aware  that  in  every  respect  life  is  much 
richer  in  the  Swiss  lakes  than  in  the  Scottish  lakes. 


III. 

The  Influence  op  the  Organic  Life  upon  the  Lakes 
themselves  and  their  surroundings. 

A.    The  Danish  Lakes. 

It  stands  to  reason  that  the  organic  life  will  always  exercise  the 
greatest  influence  upon  the  surrounding  medium  where  the 
organisms  are  in  excess,  both  as  regards  the  number  of  species 
and  the  number  of  individuals.  When  we  remember  that 
Denmark  is  built  up  of  friable  soil,  while  Scotland,  on  the  other 
hand,  consists  for  the  greater  part  of  hard  rocks,  it  will  be 
evident  that  the  influence  of  organic  life  is  far  more  intense,  and 


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1904-6.]     Study  of  the  Lakes  of  Scotland  and  Denmark.       435 

consequently  more  conspicuous,  in  Denmark  than  in  Scotland. 
Every  year  the  wide  zone  of  vegetation  which  surrounds  our 
lakes  decays  in  October  and  November,  is  broken  up  by  the 
waves,  partly  pulverised  on  the  shore,  and,  as  detritus,  carried 
out  over  the  whole  lake;  the  vegetation  which  withstood  the 
force  of  the  autumn  gales  is  frozen  in  the  ice,  and  in  spring, 
when  the  ice  breaks  up,  is  scattered  over  the  lake  as  leaves  and 
stems.  The  lime-crusts,  derived  from  the  blue-green  Algss 
covering  the  stones,  are  peeled  off  by  the  action  of  the  ice,  and  as 
powder  carried  out  from  the  shore.  As  stated  by  Forel  ( 1 89 2-1 902), 
Kirchner  (1896),  myself  (1901),  and  others,  the  blue-green  Algss 
uid  the  fauna  living  in  the  Algsd-crusts  corrode  the  stones,  so  that 
the  stones  become  brittle,  decay,  and  are  pulverised.  Every  spring, 
after  the  first  heavy  storms,  we  find  the  shores  strewn  with 
thousands  of  dying  snails  or  empty  shells,  which  are  broken  up, 
polverised,  and  as  a  tine  lime  powder,  colouring  the  water  in  calm 
bays  a  whitish-grey,  are  scattered  over  the  lake ;  the  lime  incrusta- 
tions on  Potamogeton  and  other  plants  will,  especially  in  spring 
and  autumn,  share  the  same  fate.  During  these  seasons  the 
waves  reach  the  bottom  in  depths  of  10  to  15  feet,  and  the  great 
Characea  growths,  which  often  cover  the  bottom,  are  uprooted, 
cast  on  to  the  beach,  and  undergo  the  same  process  of  pulverisa- 
tion. The  pulverised  material  remains  in  suspension  in  the  water 
for  a  long  time,  and  as  detritus  affects  the  transparency  of  the 
water, — the  amount  of  detritus,  especially  in  spring  after  heavy 
gales,  being  very  considerable.  It  may  be  added,  that  by  no  means 
all  the  material  thrown  up  on  the  beach  is  subjected  to  pulverisa- 
tion, for  a  larger  or  smaller  proportion  is  deposited  in  shallow  bays, 
and  forming  peat,  fills  them  up,  and  thus  diminishes  the  size  of 
the  lake. 

The  huge  masses  of  plankton  will  also  in  the  course  of  time 
reach  the  bottom.  I  have  shown  (1900)  that  we  can  often 
detect  beneath  the  layers  of  living  plankton — I  think  below  the 
"  sprungschicht " — layers  of  dead  plankton,  which  three  or  four 
weeks  previously  had  been  living  plankton  in  the  upper  layers  of 
water.  This  dead  plankton  mostly  consists  of  skeletons,  and  by 
means  of  vertical  hauls  I  have  followed  it  on  its  way  to  the  lake- 
bottom.     I  have  shown,  further,  that  nearly  all  the  protoplasm  of 


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436  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh.  [sna. 

the  cells  in  the  plankton  is  eaten  away  by  Phycomycetes  befoie 
reaching  the  bottom :  my  observations  prove  that  an  organism  in 
the  latter  part  of  the  period  of  maximum  development  may  very 
often  be  infected  by  Phycomycetes,  which  feed  upon  the  proto 
plasm  and  kill  it,  leaving  the  skeleton  intact. 

All  the  decayed  matter  derived  from  the  plankton  or  from  the 
littoral  organisms,  on  settling  upon  the  bottom,  will  be  mixed  with 
the  inorganic  material  washed  out  by  the  waves  from  the  shores 
or  carried  by  the  rivers  out  into  the  lakes.  In  our  country  this 
material  consists  mainly  of  lime  and  clay,  but  as  yet  the  inorganic 
constituents  of  our  lake-bottoms  have  not  been  thoroughly  studied. 
The  percentage  of  lime  in  our  deeper  lake-deposits  is  very  variable, 
but  in  most  cases  it  is  extremely  high,  often  15  to  25  per  cent., 
and  in  the  Fureso  35*30  per  cent.,  while  in  other  lakes  it  may 
rise  to  46*98,  and  even  59*44  per  cent,  (see  my  bottom  explora- 
tions, 1901,  p.  93).  We  have  no  chemical  analyses  of  the  water 
of  the  greater  lakes,  and  therefore  cannot  speak  of  any  deposits 
due  to  chemical  precipitations  from  the  water  of  the  lakes. 

The  rich  bottom-fauna,  consisting  mainly  of  Chtronomus^ 
Oligochseta,  Ostracoda,  and  Pisidium,  obtains  its  nutriment  from 
the  rain  of  organic  and  inorganic  matter  which  drops  down 
through  the  water  and  reaches  the  bottom.  I  have  studied  the 
Hfe  of  this  fauna  in  aquaria  at  the  fresh-water  biological  laboratory 
at  Fureso.  If  we  take  the  mud  from  the  greatest  depths  of  our 
lakes  and  place  it  in  aquaria,  we  shall  observe,  after  the  lapse  of 
some  days,  upon  the  surface  of  the  mud,  elevations  consisting  of 
granules,  as  well  as  some  jelly  tubes  covered  with  mud,  and  sur- 
rounded by  similar  granules.  Beneath  the  elevations  and  in  the 
tubes  we  find  respectively  Oligochaeta  and  Ghironomus  larvae ;  we 
can  detect  the  granules  being  pushed  out,  and  we  know  them  to 
be  excrementa.  If  we  take  some  mud  from  the  deep  lake-bottoms 
and  sift  it  through  a  very  fine  sieve  we  shall  find  enormous 
quantities  of  these  granules,  and  if  we  allow  the  mud  to  remain 
sufficiently  long  in  the  aquaria  the  whole  surface  becomes  con- 
verted into  granules,  that  is,  into  excrements.  From  these 
observations  we  conclude  that  the  upper  layers  of  the  deeper  lake- 
bottoms  become,  consequent  upon  the  digestive  action  of  the 
fauna,  converted  into  layers  of  excrements. 


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1904-5.]     Study  of  the  Lakes  of  Scotland  and  Denvnark.       437 

As  far  back  as  1862  these  layers  were  termed  **gytje*'  in  an 
admirable  paper  by  the  eminent  Swedish  naturalist  H.  v.  Post,  and 
this  term  is  very  much  used  in  North  European  and  Danish 
literature.  V.  Post  distinguishes  different  forms  of  "  gytje,"  but 
we  shall  here  only  deal  with  the  so-called  "  Lake-gytje,"  which  is 
formed  principally  in  clear,  limpid  water.  In  my  paper  (1901)  I 
have  pointed  out  that  the  main  condition  for  the  formation  of  this 
"  gytje  "  appears  to  be,  that  no  greater  quantities  of  organic  matter 
be  precipitated  than  the  bottom-fauna  and  the  bacteria  coi^jointly 
may  be  capable  of  digesting.  If  the  supply  of  organic  matter  be 
superabundant,  black  fetid  mud-formations  (river-deltas,  common 
sewers,  etc.)  result,  while,  on  the  other  hand,  where  the  organic 
matter,  owing  to  the  presence  of  humic  acid,  remains  undecayed 
and  is  preserved,  peat  is  formed.  Owing  to  the  digestive  processes, 
the  excrements  are  generally  of  a  lighter  colour  than  that  of  the 
lake-bottom  itself.  This  might  be  accounted  for  by  supposing  that 
the  animals  of  the  upper  layers  feed  mainly  on  the  organic  dark- 
coloured  debris,  allowing  the  inorganic  matter,  which  in  our  lakes 
consists  especially  of  lime  and  clay,  to  pass  through  their  ali- 
mentary canals.  By  means  of  bore  samples  from  shallow  lakes  I 
have  shown  that  the  colour  of  the  lake-bottom  grows  lighter  the 
deeper  we  go  down ;  it  may  be  greyish-white  4  feet  beneath  a  surface 
which  is  often  quite  black.  I  am  of  opinion  that  layers  of  almost 
pure  lime  or  clay  —  so-called  coprogenic  lime  and  clay  layers — 
may  result  from  the  digestive  action  of  the  bottom  fauna  and  flora. 

With  regard  to  the  process  of  formation,  these  layers  are  not 
identical  with  those  layers  of  clay  which,  during  and  immediately 
after  the  Ice  Age,  were  formed  on  the  primary  sandy  bottoms  of 
our  lakes,  and  were  one  of  the  first  conditions  for  the  development 
of  a  higher  and  more  specialised  organic  life  in  the  lakes.  Nowa- 
days, in  all  our  lakes,  and  probably  in  many  of  the  lakes  of  the 
Central  European  plains,  the  precipitation  of  organic  matter — 
debris  from  the  littoral  zone  as  well  as  plankton — is  very  copious. 
In  all  our  deeper  lakes  it  is  mainly  the  plankton  which  determines 
the  composition  of  the  lake-gytje ;  and  as  the  plankton  varies  in 
the  different  lakes,  it  will  be  understood  that  the  lake-gytjes 
consequently  also  differ  from  each  other. 

In  our  lakes  I  have  been  able   to   distinguish    three   different 


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438  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh.  [ant. 

forms  of  lake-gytje,  viz.,  Diatom-gytje,  Cyanophyceagytje,  and 
Chitin-gytje.  The  firat-named,  which  occurs  mostly  in  the  colder 
lakes,  contains  enormous  quantities  of  plankton  Diatom  frustoleB, 
and  may  consist  almost  exclusively  of  these ;  skeletons  of  bottom 
Diatoms  are  very  rare.  From  gytjes  of  this  composition  the 
Diatom  clay  may  arise.  According  to  Forel  it  seems  that  Uie 
Diatom  skeletons  in  deeper  lake-bottoms  may  be  dissolved  and 
disappear,  but  this  is  not  the  case  in  our  shallower  lakes.  The 
Cyanophycea-gytje  is  a  black,  fetid  substance,  consisting  of  decaying 
plankton  Cyanophycea,  and  mostly  occurs  in  warm  shallow  lakes. 
The  Chitin-gytje  contains  enormous  quantities  of  the  valves  of 
Daphnids,  and  is  generally  formed  in  small  lakes  devoid  of 
Cyanophycea.  Lately,  Holmboe  (1903)  has  found  Diatom-gytje  as 
well  as  Chitin-gytje  fossil  in  Norwegian  peat-moors. 

The  constituents  of  the  lake-gytje  are  not  the  same  all  over  the 
lake-floor,  notable  differences  being  recognisable  on  the  two  sides 
of  the  30-feet  contour-line.  Outside  this  contour  we  hardly  ever 
find  stems,  shells,  and  Mollusca  (except  Pisidtum),  and  veiy 
seldom  leaves,  the  deposit  nearly  always  consisting  of  fine  mud. 
On  the  other  hand,  inside  the  30-feet  contour  we  often  find  the 
whole  bottom  strewn  with  shells ;  leaves  and  stems  are  common,  and 
the  deposit  is  much  coarser  in  texture,  often  containing  considerable 
quantities  of  sand  and  gravel,  which  are  rarely  found  outside  the 
30-feet  contour.  As  already  stated,  the  material  inside  the  30-feet 
contour  is  either  deposited,  and  forms,  for  example,  peat,  or  is,  sooner 
or  later,  pulverised  by  the  action  of  the  waves  dashing  it  against 
the  stones  and  sandy  bays  of  the  beach ;  hand  in  hand  with  this 
mechanical  action  a  chemical  process  goes  on,  especially  as  regards 
the  lime  deposits.  A  close  study  of  the  mollusc  shells  from  the 
shore  and  shallow  water  shows  a  very  conspicuous  corrosion,  caused 
by  different  factors.  On  this  point  I  may  refer  to  my  bottom 
explorations  (1901,  p.  152),  and  would  here  only  observe  that 
hitherto  the  corrosion  of  the  shells  of  living  animals  has  been 
studied  chiefly  as  a  conchological  curiosity,  witliout  full  appreciation 
of  the  fact  that  the  corroding  influences  are  nature's  principal 
instruments  in  the  pulverisation  and  dissolution  of  lime  secreted 
by  organisms  The  process  of  pulverisation  and  dissolution  of  all 
the  waste  material  inside  the  30-feet  contour  is  greatly  accelerated 


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1904-5.]     Stvdy  of  the  Lakes  of  Scotland  and  Denmark.       439 

by  the  operations  of  the  abundant  littoral  fauna,  which  feeds  alike 
on  the  living  vegetation  and  on  the  decayed  matter ;  a  large  part 
of  these  passes  through  the  alimentary  canals  of  animals,  and  is 
transformed  into  excrementa.  The  animals  which  cause  this 
transformation  are  not  the  same  as  those  found  in  deeper  water, 
but  consist  mostly  of  insect  larvaB  and  molluscs;  very  often  we 
find  the  bottom  covered  with  long  greyish-white  excrements  of 
snails,  especially  lAmnaea  aurictdariOy  ampla,  and  ovata. 

In  our  lakes  the  space  between  the  16-feet  and  30-feet  contours 
is  marked  by  a  remarkable  and  often  very  conspicuous  elevation 
of  the  bottom.  Explorations  show  that  in  two  of  the  lakes  at 
some  distance  from  shore  a  series  of  banks  occur,  consisting  chiefly 
of  mollusc  shells  embedded  in  a  bluish-grey  lake-marl.  There  is 
no  doubt  that  the  molluscs  here  act  as  reef -forming  factors,  and 
it  will  be  understood  that  in  our  lakes  the  molluscs  must  act  as 
such.  In  the  Danish  lakes  molluscan  life  (except  Pisidium)  does 
not  extend  beyond  the  30-feet  contour.  The  shells  in  the  vegeta- 
tion zone  are  in  great  measure  dissolved  or  pulverised  by  the 
powerful  action  of  the  various  erosive  agencies  of  this  zone.  In 
the  zone  occupying  the  space  between  the  vegetation  zone  and  the 
outer  limit  of  molluscan  life  on  the  lake-floor  the  erosive  power 
of  these  agencies  is  much  diminished,  and  in  the  deeper  part  of 
the  zone  almost  niL  In  the  tranquil  water  here  the  accumulation 
of  shells  may  go  on  undisturbed  by  the  grinding  and  dissolving 
forces,  and  thus  banks  of  mollusc  shells  are  formed.  These  banks 
consist  of  the  shells  of  those  mollusca  which  can  live  outside  the 
vegetation  zone,  especially  VcUvata  piscinalis,  Bithynia^  Anodonta, 
and  Unto,  but  only  to  a  slight  extent  of  the  shells  of  Limna-a 
and  PlanorfnSj  which  live  mostly  in  the  vegetation  zone.  The 
accumulation  of  shells  in  the  "  shell-zone  "  is  often  enormous,  and 
apparently  there  is  a  striking  disproportion  between  the  large 
amount  of  empty  shells  and  the  relatively  few  specimens  of 
living  molluscs ;  yet  it  must  be  remembered  that  vast  accumula- 
tions of  shells  may  result  from  a  slow  process  of  deposition  during 
long  periods  of  time,  as  from  a  more  rapid  deposition  during  a 
shorter  period. 

Inside  the  shell-zone  and  closer  to  the  shore  we  often  find  more 
local  and  very  peculiar  formations,  among  which  may  be  mentioned 


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440  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh.  [: 

the  great  lime-deposits,  consisting  solely  of  lime-incrustations 
formed  by  the  Characea,  composed  of  very  conspicuous  broken 
stems  and  leaves.  These  lime-deposits,  in  which  the  percentage 
of  lime  may  amount  to  88*50,  are  dug  out  of  the  lakes  by 
machinery  and  used  as  manure  on  the  fields. 

In  other  locaKties  within  the  30-feet  contour  a  high  percentage 
of  lime  is  found,  but  very  often  it  is  impossible  to  discover  from 
what  source  the  lime  originates.  In  our  lakes  we  often  find  lime- 
incrustations  upon  other  plants  besides  Characea,  especially 
Potamogeton,  Elodea,  etc.  In  studying  these  lime-incrustations 
(1901)  I  arrived  at  the  following  result : — In  clear,  calm  weather 
the  lime  accumulates  in  thick  flakes  on  the  leaves  and  stems  of 
Potamogeton^  etc. ;  in  stormy  weather  it  is  swept  off  by  wave 
action.  The  precipitation  of  lime  upon  the  leaves  probably  goes 
on  unceasingly  during  assimilation ;  and  the  leaves  not  being  able 
to  carry  the  full  weight  of  the  lime,  broken  particles  are  con- 
tinually dropping  off",  which  sink  to  the  bottom  at  a  greater  or  less 
distance  from  the  plant.  In  order  to  show,  as  far  as  practicable, 
that  the  precipitations  of  lime  from  Potamogeton  and  Eiodea  play 
a  prominent  part  in  the  formation  of  lake-lime,  two  bottom- 
samples  were  taken  in  the  Furesci ;  one  from  a  bed  of  Potamogeton 
lucensy  the  other  from  a  depth  of  100  feet,  the  former  containing 
72*41  per  cent.,  the  latter  35*30  per  cent,  of  lime.  On  separately 
weighing  the  dried  leaves  of  P,  lucens  and  their  coatings,  it 
appeared  that  a  leaf  often  carried  more  lime  than  its  own  weight ; 
one  leaf  weighing  0*35  gram  carried  no  less  than  4*1  grams  of 
lime.  As  one  plant  has  often  some  thirty  leaves,  it  will  be  easily 
understood  that  the  percentage  of  lime  on  the  lake-floor  beneath 
the  dense  growths  of  Potamogeton  may  be  considerably  raised  by 
means  of  the  constant  rain  of  lime-powder  dropping  down  from 
the  leaves. 

Other  local  formations  are  the  often  extensive  layers  of  peat 
arising  from  the  decaying-  vegetation  along  the  protected  shores 
and  in  the  shallow  bays,  often  bordered  by  abundant  growths  of 
Phragmites  and  Scirptts,  In  the  shell-zone  lime-deposits  likewise 
occur,  abounding  in  mollusc  shells ;  and  in  certain  lakes  these 
shells  are  transformed  into  limonite,  so  that  considerable  layers  of 
"bohnenerz"  have  been  formed;    on  this  point  I  may  refer  to 


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1904-5.]     Study  of  the  Lakes  of  Scotland  and  Denmark.       441 

my  bottom  explorations,  where  such  transformations  are  figured 
(1901,  p.  159,  tab.  iii.). 

The  preceding  pages  will  have  shown  to  what  a  large  extent  the 
organic  life  of  a  lake  may  influence  the  lake  itself  and  its  environs. 
We  observe  the  vegetation  of  the  littoral  zone  being  transformed 
into  peat,  or  in  other  localities  being  pulverised,  and  as  detritus 
scattered  over  the  lake,  reducing  the  transparency  of  the  water, 
and  ultimately  find  it  on  the  deeper  lake-floor,  constituting  a  part 
of  the  general  precipitation.  We  see  the  blue-green  Algae  of  the 
shore  corroding  the  stones,  reducing  them  in  size,  and  the  Algse- 
crusts  in  turn  broken  off  and  pulverised  by  the  ice.  We  are  able 
to  follow  the  accumulation,  as  well  as  the  pulverisation,  of  shells 
near  the  shore,  and  to  see  the  white  powder  colouring  the  water 
a  greyish-white.  We  observe  whole  layers  of  lime  (often  several 
feet  thick)  arising  from  the  precipitated  stems  and  leaves  of 
Characea,  and  are  also  able  to  show  that  the  percentage  of  lime 
on  the  bottom  is  raised  by  the  lime  dropping  down  from  the  great 
leaves  of  Potamogeton,  We  see  the  huge  plankton  masses  deter- 
mining the  colour  of  the  water,  affecting  the  quality  of  the  air 
contained  in  the  water,  causing  accumulations  of  gases  unfit  for 
the  respiration  of  animals,  and  greatly  reducing  the  transparency 
of  the  water.  We  are  able  to  recognise  the  once-living  plankton 
as  skeletons  in  the  deeper  layers  of  water,  and  to  show  how  the 
nature  of  the  lake-bottom  is  mainly  determined  by  the  character 
of  the  plankton,  and,  furthermore,  that  whole  layers  are  derived 
from  the  accumulation  of  Diatom  skeletons.  We  also  note  how 
the  different  precipitations  are  eaten  by  the  bottom-fauna  and 
converted  into  excrementa,  and  that  the  excremental  processes 
result  in  layers  having  a  lesser  amount  of  organic  matter  and  a 
greater  amount  of  inorganic  matter  than  if  the  precipitations  had 
not  been  subjected  to  the  digestive  action  of  the  bottom-fauna. 

B.  The  Scottish  Lakes. 

As  the  result  of  my  investigations  on  the  Danish  lakes,  I  have 
dwelt  at  some  length  upon  the  manner  in  which  the  fauna  and 
flora  influence  and  react  upon  the  general  character  of  the  lakes 
themselves,  thereby  transforming  the  conditions  of  life  common 
to  all  organisms  in  the  lakes  and  their  surroundings.     From  the 


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442  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh.        [sbbs. 

impressions  I  formed  of  the  Scottish  lakes,  I  shall  next  endeavow 
to  show  how  the  organic  life  here  also  influences  the  lakes  and 
their  environs.  I  have,  of  course,  seen  too  little  of  Scotland  to 
be  able  to  do  so  as  satisfactorily  and  exhaustively  as  I  should  wish. 
From  what  I  did  see,  I  gathered  that,  owing  to  the  extreme 
paucity  of  organic  life  and  the  hardness  of  the  soil,  as  well  as  the 
lesser  amplitude  of  the  variations  in  the  temperature  of  the 
water,  the  intensity  of  all  those  processes  due  to  the  influence  of 
organic  life  is  much  less  marked  than  in  the  Danish  lakes. 

As  a  zone  of  higher  vegetation  in  the  larger  Highland  lakes  is 
almost  entirely  wanting,  peat  formation  along  the  shores  is  almost 
out  of  the  question  ;  only  a  very  small  amount  of  organic  material 
from  the  shores  is  scattered  over  the  lakes,  in  the  form  of 
detritus,  diminishing  the  transparency  of  the  water.  The  stones, 
as  far  as  I  am  aware,  are  never  covered  with  lime-incrustations 
derived  from  blue-green  Algse ;  the  Potamogetons,  etc.,  are  never 
seen  covered  with  lime-crusts ;  and  the  shells  of  mussels  or  snails 
never  abound  in  such  quantities  on  the  beach  that  their  pulverised 
fragments,  in  the  shape  of  lime-powder,  are  scattered  over  the 
lakes,  or  influence  the  percentage  of  lime  in  the  water  or  in  the 
deposits  on  the  lake-floor.  The  amount  of  plankton  in  the  larger 
Highland  lakes  is  never  or  very  rarely  so  great  as  to  aflect  the 
colour  of  the  water  in  any  notable  degree ;  most  probably  it  may 
aflect,  to  a  relatively  slight  extent,  the  transparency,  and  the 
amount  and  quality  of  the  air  in  the  water. 

From  my  studies  of  the  deposits  in  Loch  Ness,  Loch  Oich,  and 
Loch  Lochy,  I  suppose  that  the  precipitation  of  decayed  or 
decaying  matter  derived  from  the  plankton  is  very  insignificant 
Of  course,  I  never  found  any  great  quantities  of  blue-green  mud 
derived  from  blue-green  plankton  AlgsB,  but  even  the  chitinous 
valves  of  Daphnids  are  rare.  Li  Loch  Lochy,  at  a  depth  of  500 
feet,  I  most  frequently  found  the  carapaces  with  long  antennae  of 
Bosmina.  A  most  remarkable  and  interesting  thing  is  that  the 
frustules  of  Diatoms,  as  in  the  Swiss  lakes,  are  comparatively 
rare,  and  the  skeletons  that  do  occur  are,  to  my  knowledge,  only 
those  of  bottom  and  shore  Diatoms,  the  plankton  Diatoms  being 
almost  entirely  absent.  It  has  long  been  an  enigma  to  me  why 
the  skeletons  of  the  plankton  Diatoms  accumulate  on  the  bottom  in 


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1904-6.]     Stvdy  of  the  Lakes  of  Scotland  and  Denmark,       443 

OUT  lakes  at  120  feet,  while  in  the  certainly  much  deeper  alpine 
lakes  they  always  appear  to  he  dissolved  before  reaching  the 
bottom.  I  can  hardly  imagine  that  the  solution  in  the  alpine 
lakes  is  solely  due  to  the  greater  depth,  because  of  which  the 
deposition  would  occupy  a  longer  period  of  time.  On  becoming 
acquainted  with  the  plankton  Diatoms  of  the  Scottish  lakes,  it 
struck  me  that  the  Diatoms  in  nearly  all  alpine  lakes  are  the 
thin-shelled  Gyclotella,  AsterioneUOy  and  FragUaria,  Of  these 
the  two  last-mentioned  are  also  common  in  our  lakes,  but  there 
also  their  skeletons  never  produce  Diatom-ooze ;  in  many  hundreds 
of  samples  I  have  observed  very  few  frustules  of  these  forms,  and 
I  suppose  that  in  the  Danish  lakes  also  they  are  dissolved  before 
sedimentation.  The  Diatom-ooze  in  our  lakes  is  produced  by 
thick-shelled  plankton  Diatoms  (Mdonra,  Stephanodiscus  attrcea^ 
etc.),  species  which  are  rare  in  the  plankton  of  the  alpine  lakes,  but 
still  occurring  in  the  littoral  zone.  Provisionally,  I  am  inclined 
to  believe  that  the  formation  of  plankton  Diatom-ooze  in  our 
lakes  may  perhaps  be  explained  by  the  presence  of  thick-shelled 
Diatoms  in  the  plankton.  The  circulation  of  silicates  in  the 
lakes  is  a  study  of  the  greatest  interest,  and  one  regarding  which 
we  know  very  little. 

I  think  it  very  probable  that  a  future  more  exhaustive  explora- 
tion wiU  only  further  prove  that  the  precipitation  of  organic 
matter  derived  from  the  littoral  zone  and  plankton  in  the  Scottish 
lakes  is  only  relatively  small.  The  greater  part  of  the  organic 
matter  ultimately  reaching  the  bottom  in  a  more  or  less  pulverised 
state  is,  as  far  as  I  can  make  out,  derived  from  the  tops  and  sides 
of  the  mountains,  carried  into  the  lakes  by  the  rivers.  In  the 
preceding  page^  I  have  made  it  my  object  to  point  out  that, 
according  to  my  view,  the  organic  life  in  the  Scottish  lake«,  both  as 
regards  the  littoral  faunct^  the  bottom  fauna^  and  the  plankton^  to  a 
very  considerable  extent  likeioise  originally  belonged  to  the  adjoining 
country^  and  not  to  the  lake  itself.  Regarding  the  deposits  on  the 
lake-floor^  we  shall  arrive  at  a  similar  conclusion.  With  us  it  is  a 
common  rule  that  the  deposits  already  at  about  50  feet  mainly 
consist  of  fine  mud,  mingled  with  very  few  stems,  shells,  or  leaves. 
When  dredging  at  300  feet  in  Loch  Ness  I  was  greatly  surprised 
to  find  the  bottom  mainly  consisting  of  very  coarse  material,  mixed 


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444  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh,  [skss. 

with  large  stems,  leaves,  etc. ;  it  was  only  at  about  500  feet  that  I 
found  the  deposits  to  be  as  finely  pulverised  as  at  about  50  feet  in 
the  Danish  lakes.  This  phenomenon  is  easily  accounted  for — in 
our  lakes  everything  in  the  shallow  water  between  the  shore  and 
the  30-feet  contour  is  pulverised  by  the  dash  of  the  waves, 
whereas  in  the  Scottish  lakes,  owing  to  the  precipitous  hillsides, 
everything  is  carried  away  from  shore  by  the  rivers  and  waves, 
and  subsides  in  depths  of  200  to  300  feet,  without  being  exposed 
to  the  eroding  force  of  the  waves  on  a  shallow  coast. 

From  all  the  bottom-samples  I  have  seen  it  appears  that  the 
deposition  of  organic  matter  is  not  nearly  so  abundant  as  in  the 
Danish  lakes,  the  deposits  consisting  principally  of  inorganic 
materials;  there  is  further  a  total  absence  of  lime — ^a  very  con- 
spicuous difference  between  the  lake-bottoms  in  the  two  countries. 
Further  observations  may  show  in  what  manner  the  bottom  fauna 
deals  with  the  deposited  material,  and  the  changes  to  which  this 
material  is,  in  consequence,  subjected;  £  cannot  but  think  that 
here  also  layers  of  "  gytje  "  are  being  formed. 

I  suppose  that  most  of  the  observations  on  the  influence  of 
organic  life  upon  the  general  conditions  of  the  lakes  and  their 
surroundings  in  our  own  country  will  hold  good  also  with  regard 
to  most  of  the  lakes  in  the  southern  part  of  Sweden  and  in  the 
northern  part  of  Germany  ;  my  investigations  of  the  Danish  lake- 
gytjes  are  in  accordance  with  v.  Post*s  explorations  of  Swedish 
gytjes,  and  most  of  my  observations  with  regard  to  the  lime- 
deposits  have  been  corroborated  by  Passarge.  The  explorations 
of  Halbfass  among  the  lakes  of  Pomerania  show  that  the  natural 
conditions  of  those  lakes  are  very  similar  to  those  of  our  own. 

My  Visit  to  thb  Lowland  Lakes. 

Subsequent  to  my  examination  of  the  Highland  lakes,  I  visited 
some  lakes  in  the  Lowlands,  as  well  as  some  smaller  lakes  near 
Edinburgh,  including  Loch  Leven — famous  for  its  excellent  trout. 
These  lakes  presented  many  points  of  similarity  with  those  of  our 
own  country.  1  found  in  Loch  Leven  the  same  gently  sloping 
shores,  a  very  slight  transparency  of  the  water,  and  a  considerable 
amount  of  detritus ;  the  mud  was  very  fine,  and  the  large  amount 


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1904-5.]     Study  of  the  Lakes  of  Scotland  and  Denmark.       445 

of  organic  matter,  on  the  whole,  very  similar  to  that  at  the  hottom 
of  our  lakes.  The  organic  life  also  has  some  resemblance  to  that  of 
the  Danish  lakes,  but  still  I  noticed  some  very  striking  differences. 
The  band  of  vegetation  visible  above  water  was  narrow,  but  the 
evenly  sloping  sandy  shores,  especially  along  the  north-east  coast, 
were  covered  with  dense  growths  of  Characea :  strangely  enough, 
in  the  deepest  parts  of  the  lake,  in  depths  of  about  80  feet,  I 
found  the  mud  covered  with  long  filaments  of  blue -green  Algse. 
From  the  explorations  of  the  Lake  Survey  (1901a,  p.  124)  we 
know  that  the  mud  contains  no  carbonate  of  lime.  The  animal 
life  has  been  studied  by  Mr  T.  Scott,  to  whose  paper  I  refer. 
The  molluscan  life  I  found  to  be  much  richer  than  that  in 
the  Highland  lakes,  but  still  by  no  means  so  rich  as  with  us. 
Limntjea  and  Planorbis  were,  both  as  regards  species  and  in- 
dividuals, relatively  few  in  number ;  only  in  the  Characea-growths 
were  there  great  quantities  of  Valvataj  and  in  the  bottom-mud 
Sphoeriumy  Pisidium^  and  Anodonta  abounded.  The  Crustacea, 
especially  the  Cladocera,  were  represented  by  numerous  species, 
and  in  the  Characea-growths  the  animal  life  was  extremely  rich. 

The  quantity  of  plankton  was  enormous  :  I  do  not  remember  to 
have  seen,  even  in  our  lakes,  such  huge  masses  of  Leptodora,  The 
plankton,  at  the  time  I  visited  the  lake,  consisted  chiefly  of  this 
Daphnid,  with  Cyclops  gtrenuus  and  other  Entomostraca.  The 
phytoplankton  was  less  conspicuous,  Anabamaflos  aqtue  being  the 
most  predominant,  and  it  might  have  formed  "  wasserbliithe." 

General  Conclusions. 

It  will  easily  be  understood  that  where  the  alluvial  deposits  in 
shallow  lakes  are  as  copious  as  in  our  country,  the  lakes  will  in 
the  course  of  time  become  silted  up  and  overgrown,  and  will 
finally  disappear.  When  looking  at  old  maps  and  when  studying 
nature  we  meet  with  traces  of  numerous  former  lakes.  Many  have 
been  drained  by  man  and  converted  into  arable  land,  but  yet  in 
such  cases  man  has  only  forestalled  what  nature  would  have 
accomplished  in  a  relatively  short  period  of  time.  All  our  lakes 
were  formerly  much  larger,  and  their  form  and  coast-lines  far  more 
irregular,  the  bays  having  in  many  cases  been  silted  up,  and  at  the 


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446  Proceedings  of  Boyal  Society  of  Edinburgh,         [s 

end  of  the  more  elongated  lakes  we  generally  find  more  or  lese 
extensive  marshy  ground.  Many  of  our  existing  lakes  are 
apparently  doomed,  and  it  is  difficult  to  imagine  how  in  our 
country  new  lakes  could  be  formed. 

There  can  be  little  doubt  that  in  Scotland  the  coast-lines  of  the 
lakes  have  altered  very  little  during  thousands  of  years,  and  that 
the  lakes  themselves  will  remain  through  long  ages. 


List  of  Literature. 

1902.  Brehm,  v.,  "  Zusammensetzung,  Verteilung  und  Periodi- 
citat  des  Zooplankton  im  Achensee,"  Zeitschr.  d,  Ferdinandeums, 
Bd.  46,  p.  1. 

1904.  Ekman,  S.,  "Die  PhyUopoden,  Gladoceren  und  frei- 
lebenden  Copepoden  der  nord-schwedischen  Hochgebirge,"  2jOoL 
Jahrb.,  Bd.  21,  Abth.  Syst,  p.  1. 

1892-1902.  Forel,  F.  A.,  "Le  L^man,"  Monographie  linmo- 
logif^f  t.  1-3,  Lausanne. 

1901.  Forel,  F.  A.,  "Etude  thermique  des  lacs  du  Nord  de 
TEurope,"  Arch,  des  set.  phys.  et  natur,^  s^r.  4,  t.  12,  p.  35. 

1901.  Geikie,  a..  The  Scenery  of  Scotland.     London. 

1901.  Halbpass,  W.,  "  Beitrage  zur  Kenntniss  der  Pommerschen 
Seen,"  Petermann^s  MitteUungen^  Erganzungsheft  Nr.  136,  Gotha. 

1903.  HoLMBOB,  J.,  "  Planterester  i  norske  torvmyrer,"  Videns- 
kab,  Selsk.  Skri/ter  Ghriatianiay  1903,  Math,  naturv.  Klasse, 
No.  2. 

1896.  Kirchner,  D.,  in  Schroter  und  Kirchner,  "Die  Vegeta- 
tion des  Bodensees,"  Schriften  d,  Vereins  fur  GreschicfUe  des 
Bodensees  und  seiner  Umgebung,  Lindau,  I.  1896,  II.  1902. 

1900.  Murray,  Sir  John,  and  Pullar,  F.  P.,  "A  Bathymetrical 
Survey  of  the  Fresh- water  Lochs  of  Scotland,"  Part  I.,  Oeogr, 
Joum,j  vol.  XV.  p.  309. 

1901a.  Murray,  Sir  John,  and  Pullar,  F.  P.,  ibid.,  Part  II., 
ibid.,  vol.  xvii,  p.  273. 

1901b.  Murray,  Sir  John,  and  Pullar,  F.  P.,  ibid.,  Part  III., 
No.  1.  ibid.,  p.  289. 


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1904-6.]    Study  of  the  Lakes  of  Scotland  and  Denmark.       447 

1903a.  Murray,  Sir  John,  and  Pullar,  L.,  ibid..  Part  III., 
Nob.  2-6,  ibid.,  vol.  xxii.  p.  237. 

1903b.  Murray,  Sir  John,  and  Pullar,  L.,  ibid..  Part  III., 
No6.  7-9,  ibid.,  p.  621. 

1904a.  Murray,  Sir  John,  and  Pullar,  L.,  ibid.,  Part  III., 
No.  10,  ibid.y  vol.  xxiii.  p.  32. 

1904b.  Murray,  Sir  John,  and  Pullar,  L.,  ibid.,  Part  IV., 
ibid.,  p.  444. 

1903.  Ostwald,  W.,  "  tjber  eine  neue  theoretische  Betrach- 
tungsweise  in  der  Plank tologie,"  Forschungsber.  aus  der  biolog. 
Station  zu  Pl<m,  T.  x.  p.  1. 

1862.  Post,  H.  v.,  **  Studier  ofver  Nutidens  koprogena  Jord- 
bildningar :  Oyttja,  Dy,  Torf  och  Mylla,"  KongL  Svenska  Vetena- 
kaps-ako'I.,  Handl.  N.F.,  Bd.  4,  No.  1. 

1890-1899.  Scott,  Th.,  "The  Invertebrate  Fauna  of  the 
Inland  Waters  of  Scotland,"  Parts  I.-IX.  Annual  Reports  of 
the  Fishery  Board  for  Scotland. 

1893.  Scott,  Th.,  "  On  some  Entomostraca  from  Castlemilk, 
near  Kutherglen,"  Trans.  Nat.  Hist.  Sac.  Glasgoio,  vol.  iv.  (N.S.) 
p.  69. 

1892-94.  Scott,  Th.,  *-The  Land  and  Fresh-water  Crustacea 
of  the  District  around  Edinburgh :  I.  Amphipoda,  Isopoda ;  II. 
Ostracoda  and  Copepoda;  III.  Cladocera,"  Proc.  Roy.  Phya. 
Soc.  Edinimrghf  vol.  xi.  p.  73 ;  vol.  xii.  pp.  45,  362. 

1899.  Scott,  Th.,  "  Some  Notes  on  the  Fresh- water  Entomos- 
traca of  Aberdeenshire,"  Annah  of  Scottish  Nat.  Hist.,  1899,  p.  216. 

1901-2.  Scott,  Th.,  "Notes  on  some  Fresh-  and  Brackish- 
water  Entomostraca  found  in  Aberdeenshire,"  ibid.,  1901,  p.  157  ; 
1902,  p.  21. 

1903.  Scott,  Th.,  "Some  Observations  on  British  Fresh-water 
Harpactids,'*  Ann.  Mag.  Nat.  Hist.,  ser.  7,  vol.  xi.  p.  185. 

1903a.  Scourpibld,  D.  J.,  "  Synopsis  of  the  Known  Species  of 
British  Fresh-water  Entomostraca.  Part  I.  Cladocera,"  Joum. 
Quekett  Micr.  Club,  ser.  2,  vol.  viii.  p.  431. 

1903b.  Scourpikld,  D.  J.,  ibid..  Part  II.  Copepoda,  ibid.,  ser.  2, 
vol.  viii.  p.  531. 

1904.  Scourpibld,  D.  J.,  ibid..  Part  III.  Ostracoda,  Phyllopoda^ 
and  Branchiura,  ibid.,  ser.  2,  vol.  ix.  p.  29. 


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448  ProceediTigs  of  Royal  Society  of  JSdinburgh.  [sess. 

1901.  Steuer,  A.,  "Die  Entomostracenfauiia  der  *alteii  Donau' 
bei  Wien,"  Zoolog.  Jahrb.,  Bd.  15,  Abth.  Syst,  p.  1. 

1904.  UssiNG,  N.,  **  Danmarks  Geologi  i  almenfatteligt  Om- 
rids,"  Danmarks  geologuke  Undersdgdse,  III.  R.  Nr.  2,  Kjbbenhavn. 

1904.  VoiGT,  M.,  **  Die  Rotatorien  und  Gastrotrichen  der 
Umgebimg  von  Plon,"  Fffrschungsber.  aus  der  biolog,  StcUion  zu 
Plan,  T.  11,  p.  1. 

1895.  Warming,  E.,  *•  Plantesamfund,"  Grundirosk  af  den 
okoloffiske  Plantegeograji,  Kjbbenhavn. 

1904.  West,  W.,  and  West,  G.  S.,  "Scottish  Fresh-water 
Plankton,  No.  I.,"  Joum.  Linn,  Soc,  Botany,  vol.  xxxv.  p.  519. 

1900.  Wbsbnberg-Lund,  C,  "Von  dem  Abhangigkeitsver- 
haltnis  zwischen  dem  Bau  der  Planktonorganismen  und  dem 
epezifischen  Gewicht  des  Siisswassers,"  Biolog.  Centralbl.,  Bd.  20, 
pp.  606,  644. 

1901.  Wesenbbrg-Lund,  C.,  "  Studier  over  Sbkalk,  Bbnnemalm 
og  Sbgytje  i  danske  Indsoer,"  with  summary  of  contents,  Meddd. 
fra  dansk  geol.  Foren,  Kjbbenhavn,  Bd.  7,  p.  1. 

1902.  Wesenbbrg-Lund,  C.,  "  Sur  Texistence  d'une  faune  relicte 
dans  le  lac  de  Furesb,"  Kong,  Danske  Videnskab.  Sdsk.  Forhand- 
linger,  1902,  p.  257. 

1904.  Wesenbbrg-Lund,  C,  "Plankton  Investigations  of  the 
Danish  Lakes,"  Danish  Fresh-water  Biological  Laboratory,  Op.  5, 
Copenhagen. 

1900.  ZscHOKKB,  F.,  "Die  Tierwelt  der  Hochgebirgseen," 
Neue  Denkschr.  d,  Schweh,  naturf.  Oes.,  Ziirich,  Bd.  37,  p.  1. 


{Ismed  separately  March  8,  1906.) 


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Proc  Roy,  Soc.  of  Min .  ]  [  V o L.  X  X  V . 

Plate  I. 


Fig.  1. — Ice  erosion  on  the  shores  of  the  Fureso. 
(Photo  by  Dr  C.  Wesenberg-Lund.) 


Fir..  2.  — Furesii  with  its  zones  of  PJir<y(fiiiffrft  and  Srirpua. 
(Plioto,  V>y  Dr  C.  Wcsen berg- Lund.) 


Dii  VVe8p:nbek(;-Lund 


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Proc.  Roil.  Sue.  ofEdin.]  [Vol.   XXV. 

Plate  II. 


Fig.  3.— Loch  Xess  from  Borluni,  looking  north-east. 
(Photo,  by  MrG.  West.) 


Flo.  4.— Loch  Killiii  (near  Loch  Ness),  looking  north,  showing  steep 
escarpment  on  the  \vest<^rn  shore, 
(Photo,  by  MrG.  West.) 
Dr  WesenbkkgLund. 


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1904-5.]  Crystallisation  of  Potassium  Hydrogen  Siuxinaie.    449 


Variations  in  the  Crystallisation  of  Potassium  Hydrogen 
Succinate  due  to  the  presence  of  other  metctUic 
compounds  in  the  Solution.  {Preliminary  Notice,)  By 
Alexander  T.  Cameron,  M.A.  Communicated  by  Dr 
Hugh  Marshall,  F.R.S. 

(MS.  received  January  9,  1905.     Read  January  23,  1905.) 

In  the  summer  of  1902,  while  working  as  a  student  in  the 
Chemistry  Department  of  Edinburgh  University,  I  prepared  a 
quantity  of  potassium  chromoxalate  (Gregory's  salt)  as  an  ordinary 
exercise,  and  this  led  me  to  attempt  the  preparation  of  a  similar 
derivative  of  succinic  acid,  since  such  derivatives  apparently  had 
not  been  obtained. 

For  this  purpose  a  solution  of  potassium  hydrogen  succinate 
(prepared  by  half  -  neutralising  succinic  acid  with  potassium 
carbonate)  was  boiled'  for  some  time  with  freshly  precipitated 
chromic  hydroxide  (prepared  by  adding  ammonia  to  a  boiling 
solution  of  chrome  alum,  filtering,  and  washing  thoroughly).  The 
undissolved  hydroxide  was  filtered  off,  and  the  filtrate  subjected 
to  the  same  treatment  with  fresh  chromic  hydroxide ;  the  whole 
process  was  repeated  two  or  three  times,  the  final  filtrate  being 
dark  green  in  colour.  A  portion  of  this  solution  was  evaporated 
to  small  bulk  by  boiling ;  on  cooling,  potassium  hydrogen  succinate 
first  crystallised  out,  and  then  a  green  crystalline  powder  was 
obtained.  The  remainder  of  the  solution  was  concentrated  only 
to  about  half  its  volume  and  allowed  to  stand  for  three  days ;  at 
the  end  of  that  time  dark  green  crystals  were  deposited.  These 
showed  the  striking  pecuHarity  of  being  bounded  only  by  curved 
surfaces,  plane  faces  being  entirely  absent ;  from  their  shape  they 
might  be  described  as  obhque  elliptical  double  cones,  possessing 
monoclinic  symmetry  (plane  of  symmetry  with  digonal  axis  normal 
to  it).  A  perfect  cleavage,  yielding  highly  lustrous  faces,  was 
observed  parallel  to  the  plane  of  symmetry,  and  the  parallelogram 

PROC.  ROY.  800.  EDIN. — VOL.  XXV.  29 


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460  Proceedings  of  Boyal  Society  of  Edinbv/rgh,  [i 

formed  by  the  outline  of  the  cleavage  face  had  an  obtuse  angle 
of  about  135'. 

Until  recently  I  was  unable  to  continue  the  investigation,  but, 
owing  to  the  publication  of  a  paper  by  Werner  on  "  The  Behaviour 
of  Chromic  Hydroxide  towards  Oxalic  Acid  and  certain  other 
Organic  Acids"  (7.  Ch&nu  Soc,,  1904,  85,  p.  1438),  I  have  con- 
sidered it  desirable  to  publish  a  preliminary  note,  although  the 
results  so  far  obtained  can  only  be  stated  generally. 

Several  preparations  have  been  made  similar  to  that  described 
above,  and  the  crystalline  products  analysed  for  chromium.  The 
percentage  varies  considerably  in  the  different  preparations,  and  as 
yet  it  is  impossible  to  state  what  is  the  maximum,  but  specimens 
hitherto  analysed  show  considerably  less  than  1  per  cent.  Since 
potassium  hydrogen  succinate  crystallises  in  monoclinic  crystals 
possessing  a  plane  of  symmetry  and  showing  perfect  cleavage 
faces  parallel  to  it,  the  small  amount  and  the  fluctuation  in  that 
amount  of  chromium  present  in  these  crystals  lead  to  the 
assumption  that  they  are  potassium  hydrogen  succinate,  the 
external  surfaces  being  modified  by  the  presence  of  some  chromium 
compound,  possibly  in  solid  solution. 

Attempts  have  also  been  made  to  dissolve  other  hydroxides  and 
certain  carbonates  in  potassium  hydrogen  succinate  solution. 

When  copper  carbonate  was  taken  a  precipitate  of  copper 
succinate  was  first  produced ;  the  filtrate  from  this  was  coloured 
slightly  blue,  and  after  standing  for  some  time  deposited  crystals 
of  the  acid  succinate.  These  showed  six-sided  prism  faces,  and 
also,  superimposed  on  these,  curved  faces  similar  to  those  observed 
with  chromic  hydroxide. 

Crystals  showing  traces  of  these  curved  faces  have  been  obtained 
from  solutions  in  which  aluminium  hydroxide  had  been  dissolved. 

Equal  quantities  of  fairly  concentrated  solutions  of  potassium 
hydrogen  succinate  and  ferric  chloride  (containing  a  few  drops  of 
hydrochloric  acid)  were  mixed,  and  in  a  few  minutes  a  brick-red 
precipitate  appeared.  The  solution  and  precipitate  were  boiled 
with  another  equal  quantity  of  potassium  hydrogen  succinate,  the 
precipitate  filtered  off,  and  the  filtrate,  which  was  slightly  yellow 
in  colour,  set  aside  to  crystallise.  At  the  end  of  three  weeks  pale 
yellow   cryst^s   were   found  at  the  bottom   of  the  crystallising 


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1004-6.]  CrystaUisatifm  of  Potassium  H^i/droffen  Siuxinate.    461 

dish,  elliptical  in  form,  and  growing  in  towards  the  centre.  Their 
appearance  was  that  of  truncated  cones.  They  were  removed,  and 
a  month  later  a  single  elliptical  biconical  crystal  was  obtained ;  it 
was  brownish-yellow  in  colour,  and  resembled  those  obtained  with 
chromic  hydroxide,  but  was  much  more  perfect  in  form. 

Chromic  hydroxide  dissolves  in  potassium  hydrogen  malate 
much  more  readily  than  in  the  corresponding  succinate,  and  gives 
finally  a  very  dark  green  solution,  from  which  crystals  similar  to 
those  already  described  have  been  obtained. 

I  am  continuing  the  investigation,  and  hope  to  be  able  to  publish 
a  detailed  examination  of  these  crystals  at  an  early  date. 


Chemical  Laboratort, 
SuBOBONs'  Hall,  Edinburgh* 


{Issued  separately  February  4,  1905.) 


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452  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh,  [i 


A  Laboratory  Apparatus  for  Measuring  the  Lateral 
Strains  in  Tension  and  Compression  Members,  with 
some  Applications  to  the  Measurement  of  the 
Elastic  Constants  of  Metals.  By  E.  G.  Coker,  M.A. 
(Cantab.),  D.Sc.  (Edin.),  F.R.S.E.,  Professor  of  Mechanical 
Engineering  and  Applied  Mathematics,  City  and  Guilds 
Technical  College,  Finsbury,  London.     (With  a  Plate.) 

(MS.  received  October  26,  1904.     Read  November  21,  1904.) 

The  recognition  of  the  imi)ortance  of  lateral  strain  in  the  theory 
of  elasticity,  as  now  taught  in  most  engineering  coUeges,  makes 
it  very  desirable  that  students  should  make  experiments  upon  the 
Ikteral  contraction  of  tension  specimens  and  the  lateral  extension 
of  compression  pieces  with  the  same  facility  that  they  now  deter- 
mine the  values  of  Young's  modulus  and  the  modulus  of  shear. 

With  this  purpose  in  view,  the  author  designed  an  instrument 
which  has  been  very  thoroughly  tested  by  student-use  for  the 
past  two  years  in  the  testing  laboratory  of  M'Gill  University. 

For  the  object  in  view  it  was  necessary  to  make  an  apparatus 
of  simple  construction,  easily  operated  and  understood,  and 
capable  of  standing  a  considerable  amount  of  wear  and  tear  without 
injury,  while  at  the  same  time  it  must  be  capable  of  measuring 
with  accuracy  linear  strains  of  the  order  of  ^^y.^nnr  ^^  *^  itic^i. 

After  some  minor  alterations,  an  apparatus  was  constructed 
which  fulfilled  these  requirements. 

The  instrument  is  shown  in  sectional  elevation  by  fig.  1,  and 
in  part  sectional  plan  by  fig.  2,  and  it  consbts  essentially  of 
a  pair  of  tubular  arms  A^  connected  by  a  flexible  steel  plate  B^ 
which  forms  the  fulcrum.  This  plate  is  very  thin,  in  order  to 
allow  the  arms  to  turn  in  the  plane  passing  through  their  axes, 
and  is  very  deep,  to  give  the  necessary  rigidity  perpendicular  to  the 
plane  of  motion,  and  thereby  ensure  that  the  arms  have  no  other 
motion.  The  plate  is  gripped  by  a  pair  of  collars  (7,  mounted  on  the 
arms  A^  and  provided  with  grooved  ends  and  tightening  screws. 

The  instrument  is  attached  to  the  specimen  by  a  pair  of  screws 
Z>,.  threaded  through  nuts   formed  on   the  arms  and  provided 


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1904-5.]     Apparatus  for  Measuring  Zaieral  Strains. 


iSZ 


'with  lock  nuts,  and  the  pressure  of  the  screw  points  on  the 
specimen  is  regulated  by  a  spring  threaded  over  a  hollow  spindle 
^  pivoted  to  one  arm,  this  spindle  being  guided  by  a  second,  F, 
pivoted  to  the  other  arm:  the  compression  of  the  spring  is 
regulated  by  a  nut  G  upon  the  outer  spindle. 


FHiyu^re  1 


The  free  ends  of  the  tubes  are  prolonged  beyond  the  screw 
grips,  and  one  of  them  is  fitted  with  an  ebony  finger  H,  having 
a  thin  steel  plate  1  secured  to  its  outer  end,  which  presses  against 
a  double  knife-edge  J,  seated  in  a  shallow  V-notch  cut  in  the  end 
of  the  other  arm. 

This  knife-edge  carries  a  mirror  K  pivoted  upon  a  vertical 
spindle,  and  capable  of  adjustment  about  an  horizontal  axis  alsa 
An  adjusting  screw  Z,  secured  in  one  of  the  collars,  bears  against 
the  specimen,  and  keeps  the  instrument  from  swinging  round  on 
the  points  of  the  screws. 

With  this  arrangement  any  alteration  in  the  diameter  of  the 
specimen  between  the  screw  points  causes  a  movement  of  the 
outer  end  of  one  arm  relatively  to  the  other,  and  a  proportional 
rotation  of  the  knife-edge  and  its  attached  mirror  is  obtained. 
This  rotation  is  observed  by  a  telescope  and  scale  placed  at  a 
Convenient  distance  away,  and  a  measure  of  the  change   in   the 


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454 '  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh,         [sim. 

diameter  of  the  specimen  is  thus  obtained.  A  photograph  of 
the  apparatus  is  shown  in  fig.  3  mounted  upon  a  tension  specimen. 

The  value  of  a  unit  of  the  scale  was  obtained  by  calibrating  the 
instrument  bj  a  Whitworth  measuring  machine,  and  it  was  found 
that,  with  the  scale  24*8  inches  distant  from  the  mirror,  one 
division  of  the  scale  corresponded  to  one-millionth  of  an  inch. 

At  first  some  minor  difficulties  were  experienced  owing  to  the 
longer  branches  of  the  tubes  being  insufficiently  rigid,  and  they 
were  therefore  trussed,  with  good  effect,  and  afterwards  pieces  of 
hard  wood,  of  square  section,  were  forced  down  the  tubes; 
this  overcame,  the  difficulty  completely.  As  the  instrument  was 
wholly  of  brass,  some  difficulty  was  experienced  owing  to  small 
changes  of  temperature  in  the  laboratory,  which  sometimes  altered 
the  zero  of  the  instrument  during  a  test ;  this  error  was  guarded 
against  by  lagging  with  chamois  leather. 

The  instrument,  when  used  in  conjunction  with  an  apparatus 
for  measuring  longitudinal   strain,  gives  a  measure  of  Poisson's 

ratio  —  if  the  material  fulfils  the  conditions  assumed  by  the  theory 
m 

of  elasticity ;  and  knowing  the  value  of  Young's  modulus  £,  we 
can  easily  calculate  the  modulus  of  shear  C  and  the  bulk  modulus 
D  from  the  formulflB 

C  =  l-?^    E 
2m+l 

3  m-2 
As  an  example  of  this  we  may  quote  a   test   of  a  piece   of 
machinery  steel  in  tension,  when  the  lateral  extensometer  above 
described  and  a  Ewing  extensometer  were  secured  to  the  specimen. 
The  experiment  gave  the  following  results  : — 
Steel  specimen  I'Ol  inches  in  diameter. 
Length  under  test  8*00  inches. 

Ewing  Extensometer,  one  division  =  77.^17  of  an  inch. 
Lateral  Extensometer,  one  division  =  T,insh,wuT5  ^^  ®^  ^^^• 
The  accompanying  table  of  observations  (page  455)  shows  that 
the  mean  longitudinal  strain  per  unit  of  length  is  '0000825  inches, 
and  the  mean  lateral  strain  -0000206,  corresponding  to  a  value 
for  m  of  4*01,  and  the  value  of  E,  obtained  in  the  usual  manner,  is 
30,250,000,  the  units  being  pounds  and  inches. 


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1904-6.]     Apparatutfor  Measuring  Lateral  Strains. 


455 


LoDgitadinal 

Strain. 

Lateral  Strain. 

Load 
Poands. 



Reading. 

A 

Reading.         A        | 

1 

1,000 

0 

0                        , 

-84 

-20      ' 

8,000 

84 

20 

-82 

-22      , 

6,000 

66 

42 

»3 

-21 

7,000 

99 

68 

-83 

-22 

9.000 

132 

85 

-33 

-21 

11,000 

165 

106                        ' 

0 

0 

0                        i 

1 

The  values  of  C  and  D  are  respectively  12,378,000  and 
20,603,000,  with  the  same  units. 

As  a  further  example  we  may  quote  the  case  of  a  wrought-iron 
bar  in  tension,  having  a  diameter  of  1  inch,  the  test  being  similar 
to  the  one  previously  described.     The  readings  obtained  were — 


Load 
Pounds. 


1,000 
8,000 
5,000 
7,000 
9,000 
11,000 
9,000 
7,000 
6,000 
8,000 
1,000 


Longitudinal  Strain. 

Lateral  Strain. 

Reading.         A 

Reading.         A 

0 

0 

-87 

-25 

37 

25 

-85 

-25 

72 

60 

-34 

-25 

106 

75 

-87 

-24 

143 

99 

-36 

-25 

179 

124 

-86 

-22 

148 

102 

-86 

-24      ' 

108 

78 

-36 

-24 

72 

54 

-85 

-25 

37 

29 

-37 

-25 

0 

4 

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456  Proceedings  of  Roycd  Society  of  Edinburgh,  [sess. 

And  from  these  readings  we  derive  the  following  values  : — 

m  =  3-64 
E  =  28,450,000 
0=11,160,000 
D  =  21,048,000 

Other  metals  were  also  experimented  upon,  and  in  some  cases 
under  compression,  when  the  longitudinal  strain  was  measured  by 
a  compressometer  of  Professor  Swing's  design.  It  will  be  suflB- 
cient  to  quote  the  results  of  these  experiments  without  the  detailed 
observations,  which  present  no  peculiarity  except  that,  in  the 
cases  of  cast-iron,  brass,  and  copper,  the  stress  strain  curve  for  a 
complete  cycle  of  stress  was  a  very  narrow  loop.  In  these  cases 
the  mean  value  of  the  strains  for  the  whole  range  of  stress  was 
taken  for  calculating  the  values  of  the  constants.  The  results, 
including  the  tests  above  cited,  were  as  follows  : — 


Tension  Experiments, 


Specimen. 

m 

E          ' 

C 

D      ! 

Machinery  Steel,    . 

4-01 

30,260,000 

12,378,000 

20,608,000 

Wrought- Iron, 

3-64 

28,450,000 

11,160,000 

21,048,000   1 

Rolled- Brass, 

3-10 

14,700,000 

6,667,000 

18,809,000 

Rolled-Copper, 

3  02 

10.100,000 

8,794,000 

9,640,000   1 

Compression  Experiment 


Specimen. 

m 

E 

0 

D 

Machinery  Steel,    . 

4-09 

29,600,000 

11,891,000 

19.310,000 

Wrought- Iron, 

3-58 

28,100,000 

11,000,000 

21,200.000 

Rolled- Brass, 

3-12 

14,820,000 

6.620,000 

13,760,000 

Cast-Iron,      . 

4-07 

14,900,000 

6,960,000 

9,750,000 

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Proc.  Roy,  Soctj.  of  Edin.] 


[V(»L.  XXV. 


1 


Pkofkssou  E.  G.  Coker. 


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1904-5.]     Apparattbs  for  Measuinng  Lateral  Strains.  457 

These  results  correspond  with  those  obtained  by  Bauschinger,* 
Stromeyer,t  Morrow  J  and  others. 

It  should  be  noted,  in  conclusion,  that  the  specimens  of  material 
for  the  tension  and  compression  specimens  were  not  identical, 
but  they  were  taken  from  the  same  consignments. 

*  Der  Civilingenieur,  vol.  xxv.,  1879. 

t  "  Ezperimental  DetennlnatioD  of  PoiBson's  Ratio/'  Proc  R,S.t  1894. 
t  "  On  an  Instrument  for  Measuring  the  Lateral  Contraction  of  the  Bars, 
and  on  the  Determination  of  Poisson's  Ratio,"  Phil,  Mag,,  1903. 


{I89iied  separately  March  3,  1905.) 


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458  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh,         [i 


On  Astronomical  Seeing.     By  Dr  J.  Halm, 

Lecturer  in  Astronomy  in  the  University  of  Edinburgh. 

(Read  May  6,  1904.    MS.  received  October  14,  1904.) 

In  the  Annual  Report  of  the  Smithsonian  Institution  for  1902 
Prof.  Langley  has  published  an  important  note  on  "  Good  Seeing," 
in  which  he  describes  some  experiments  undertaken  with  the  view 
of  improving  the  definition  of  telescopic  images,  so  far  as  it  depends 
on  the  conditions  of  the  air  in  the  vicinity  of  the  instrument.  Up 
to  now  the  belief  has  prevailed  among  astronomers  that  in  order 
to  obtaiu  good  definitions  the  air  inside  the  telescope-tubes  should 
be  kept  as  much  as  possible  not  only  at  a  uniform  temperature  but 
also  in  a  state  of  perfect  tranquillity.  Langley,  however,  shows  that 
this  view  is  not  quite  correct,  and  that  maintaining  constant  and 
uniform  temperature  inside  the  tube,  while  preventing  circulation 
between  the  air  inside  and  outside  the  instrument,  is  not  sufficient 
to  produce  satisfactory  telescopic  images.  Particularly,  this  method 
does  not  diminish  the  troublesome  boiling  which  in  solar  observa- 
tions proves  so  often  to  be  a  source  of  grave  inconvenience  to  the 
observer.  But  he  shows  that  if  the  air  inside  and  near  the 
telescope-tube  is  agitated  by  stirring,  the  definition  becomes  at 
once  markedly  better.  The  improvement  has  in  all  cases  been  so 
decided  that  the  reality  of  this  beneficial  effect  of  stirring  cannot 
well  be  doubted. 

This  result  has  led  me  to  investigate  the  question  as  to  whether 
a  similar  conclusion  may  perhaps  be  drawn  with  regard  to  the 
great  mass  of  atmosphere  which  is  traversed  by  the  luminous  rays 
of  the  celestial  object  before  they  reach  our  telescopes.  Is  there 
any  reason  for  assuming  that  stirring  this  mass  of  air  would 
improve  the  definition,  sharpness,  and  steadiness  of  the  star 
images  ?    The  question,  I  think,  has  not  been  asked  before ;  and 


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1904-5.]  Dr  J.  Halm  on  Astronomical  Suing,  469 

I  should  like,  therefore,  to  discuss  it  here  in  a  few  words,  especially 
as  the  answer  to  it  seems  to  be  simple  and  conclusive. 

Let  us  first  get  an  insight  into  the  cause  of  the  blurrings 
of  telescopic  images,  so  far  as  atmospheric  circumstances  are 
responsible  for  it.  We  feel  no  hesitation  to  look  for  this  cause 
in  the  incessant  motions  of  our  atmosphere,  in  the  spontaneous, 
fitful,  and  ever  varying  displacements  of  air  from  one  place  to 
another,  in  consequence  of  local  changes  of  temperature  and 
pressure.  Now,  the  motion  itself  can  have  no  direct  effect  on  the 
definition.  The  cause  of  the  blurring  must  be  looked  for  in  sudden 
changes  of  the  index  of  refraction  of  the  air  resulthig  from  its 
internal  motions.  If,  for  instance,  a  volume  of  heated  air  rises 
from  the  surface  of  the  soil  to  a  higher  layer,  and  arrives  there 
with  a  temperature  higher  or  lower  than  that  of  the  layer  itself, 
the  temperature  and  density  of  that  particular  point  of  the 
atmosphere,  and  thus  its  index  of  refraction,  will  be  momentarily 
altered.  Hence  the  direction  of  a  ray  of  light  passing  through  this 
point  must  suffer  a  corresponding  change ;  the  consequence  being, 
that  among  the  rays  which,  under  undisturbed  and  perfectly  ideal 
conditions,  would  all  reach  the  object-glass  in  parallel  directions, 
those  passing  through  the  affected  area  will  be  thrown  into  slightly 
different  paths,  and  will  therefore  be  focussed  at  different  points  of 
the  field  of  view. 

Now,  we  may  ask:  If  the  definition  of  telescopic  images 
depends  on  these  fitful  changes  of  the  index  of  refraction  which 
are  caused  by  the  unavoidable  movements  and  displacements  of 
air  in  the  atmosphere,  are  there  conditions  under  which  these 
movements  have  a  minimum  disturbing  effect  ?  It  is  well  known 
that  there  is  indeed  one  particular  state  of  the  atmosphere  in 
which  these  conditions  seem  to  be  present,  viz.,  the  so-called  state 
of  adiabatic  equilibrium.  In  this  state  a  volume  of  air  carried 
from  one  layer  to  another  will  arrive  at  its  new  position  with 
exactly  the  S€ane  temperature  and  density  which  were  previously 
possessed  by  the  mass  of  air  whose  place  it  has  taken.  Hence 
motion  of  air,  in  whatever  direction  it  may  take  place,  is  not 
accompanied  by  change  of  the  index  of  refraction.  We  may 
compare  the  atmosphere  in  this  particular  state  to  a  liquid  in 
which  bodies  are  suspended,  of  any  size  and  shape,  but  of  the 


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460  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh,  [i 

same  transparency  and  refrangibility  as  the  liquid  itself.  What- 
ever may  be  the  motions  of  these  bodies  within  the  liquid,  they 
can  have  no  disturbing  effect  on  the  course  of  the  rays  passing 
through  the  medium,  which  will  behave  as  an  homogeneous 
substance. 

This  reasoning  leads  us  to  expect  the  most  perfect  telescopic 
images  whenever  the  atmosphere  traversed  by  the  light  of  the 
star  is  in  the  state  of  adiabatic  equilibrium.  Now,  it  is  a  well- 
known  fact  that  this  state  is  reached,  or  at  least  approached,  when 
air  is  agitated  by  convection.  It  is  for  this  reason  that  Lord 
Kelvin  long  ago  proposed  to  call  this  equilibrium  *  convective,' 
instead  of  *  adiabatic'  or  *  indiflFerent.*  Hence  we  conclude  that 
seeing  should  be  most  favourable  when  the  air  has  been  previously 
stirred  by  convection-currents.  With  regard  to  the  general 
atmosphere,  we  reach  therefore  the  same  conclusion  at  which 
Langley  has  arrived  by  his  experiments  where  he  considered  the 
comparatively  small  mass  of  air  in  the  immediate  vicinity  of  the 
instrument 

Several  facts  may  be  mentioned  which  seem  to  corroborate  this 
explanation,  and  in  some  measure  to  bear  out  its  validity.  For 
instance,  we  know  that  on  clear  summer  days,  especially  at 
continental  stations,  convection  between  the  upper  and  lower 
layers  of  the  atmosphere  takes  place  during  the  daytime,  being 
most  energetic  in  the  afternoon.  Hence  we  infer  that  convective 
equilibrium  is  most  nearly  attained  in  the  early  evening,  and 
consequently  that  the  definition  of  stellar  images  should  be  best 
during  the  first  hours  of  the  night.  In  the  later  hours  the  seeing 
must  become  worse,  because,  in  consequence  of  nocturnal  radiation, 
the  vertical  distribution  of  temperature  changes  gradually  so  as 
to  become  incompatible  with  the  conditions  of  adiabatic  equilibrium. 
Towards  the  morning  hours  conditions  become,  therefore,  more 
and  more  prevalent  under  which  spontaneous  displacements  of 
masses  of  air  must  be  accompanied  by  fitful  changes  of  its  re- 
frangibility. My  experience  as  an  observer  at  Strasbourg  is  in 
perfect  accordance  with  these  conclusions.  As  a  rule,  the  seeing 
in  the  early  summer  evenings  at  the  time  of  sunset  was  excellent, 
while  after  two  o'clock  in  the  morning  the  images  had  usually 
become  so   bad   that   the   observations   had   to  be  discontinued. 


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1904-5.]  Dr  J.  Halm  on  Astronomical  Seeing.  461 

The  worst  definition  was  commonly  experienced  shortly  before 
sunrise.  Professor  Copeland  tells  me  that  at  Parsenstown  the 
seeing  was  specially  good  during  a  gale,  and  my  own  experience 
here  in  Edinburgh  confirms  this  statement. 

The  superiority  of  the  definition  in  summer  over  that  in  winter 
which  is  very  marked  at  continental  observatories  is  readily 
explained  by  the  fact  that  convection  is  much  more  energetic  in 
the  former  season.  Indeed,  at  continental  stations  the  atmo- 
sphere in  winter  is  on  the  whole  very  far  from  the  condition  of 
adiabatic  equilibrium,  the  temperature-gradient  being  much  too 
small,  and  often  even  reversed. 

The  question  is  doubtless  of  practical  importance,  and  should 
receive  attention  when  sites  for  new  observatories  are  selected. 
The  erection  of  observatories  on  or  near  mountains  may  be 
advocated  from  this  point  of  view,  because  horizontal  movements 
of  the  atmosphere  are  deflected  at  the  mountain  sides  into  more 
vertical  directions,  thus  enhancing  that  **  stirring "  of  the  atmo- 
sphere above  the  station  which  leads  to  the  establishment  of  con- 
vective  equilibrium.  The  atmosphere  on  mountains,  besides  being 
more  transparent,  must  also  be  steadier,  in  an  optical  sense,  not 
from  the  absence  of  motions,  but  because  these  motions,  by  taking 
place  under  adiabatic  conditions,  exert  little  or  no  disturbing 
influence  on  the  normal  refrangibility  of  the  air. 

Meteorologists  may  perhaps  give  us  definite  and  practical  hints 
as  to  the  more  or  less  favourable  conditions  under  which  convection 
takes  place  in  our  atmosphere.  Astronomers  should  be  guided  by 
these  advices  in  the  selection  of  localities  for  their  observatories. 
Clearly,  we  have  no  means  to  prevent  the  incessant  general  and 
local  movements  of  the  vast  gaseous  ocean  above  us.  But  knowing 
that  under  one  certain  condition  these  uncontrollable  motions, 
otherwise  so  much  inclined  to  impair  our  vision,  may  be  rendered 
optically  ineflFective,  we  must  avail  ourselves  of  every  possible 
chance  by  which  this  ideal  condition  may  be  approached, — on  the 
one  hand,  by  taking  full  advantage  of  favourable  topographic  and 
climatic  features,  and  on  the  other,  by  designing  mechanical  devices 
for  inducing  convection  in  the  neighbourhood  of  our  instruments. 

It  would  be  interesting  to  hear  the  opinion  of  practical 
astronomers  on  this  question,  and  to  see  how  far  their  experiences 


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462  Proceedings  of  Boyqi  Society  of  JSdinburgh,  [sssft. 

confirm  my  conclusions.  I  also  wish  to  induce  observers  to  take 
regular  notes  of  the  conditions  of  seeing,  and  to  enter  into  their 
notebooks  such  remarks  on  the  meteorological  conditions  prevail- 
ing at  the  time  of  observation  as  may  enable  us  to  test  the  views 
here  expressed. 


{Issued  separately  March  8,  1905.) 


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1904-6.]    OraptolUe^aring  Rocks  of  the  South  Orkneys,       463 


On  the  Ghraptolite-bearing  Bocks  of  the  South  Orkneys. 
By  J.  H.  Harvey  Pirie,  B.Sc,  M.B.,  Ch.B.  Communi- 
cated by  Dr  Horne,  F.R.S.  With  a  Note  by  Dr  Peach  on 
Specimens  from  the  South  Orkneys. 

(MS.  receired  February  7,  1905.     Read  February  20,  1905.) 

The  South  Orkneys  are  a  small  group  of  islands  situated  in  the 
Southern  Ocean,  in  about  62'  S.  lat.  and  46'  W.  long.,  roughly 
800  miles  S.£.  of  Cape  Horn.  A  single  landing  was  made  from 
the  "  Scotia  "  on  Saddle  Island,  a  small  island  on  the  north  side 
of  the  group,  and  another  on  Coronation  Island,  the  largest  and 
most  westerly.  With  these  two  exceptions  all  the  rock  specimens 
were  obtained  on  Laurie  Island,  the  most  easterly  of  the  group. 

The  rock  got  on  Coronation  Island  is  a  coarse  conglomerate,  in 
which  the  bedding  is  well  marked,  the  individual  beds  averaging 
about  2  feet  in  thickness,  and  dipping  at  about  30'  in  a  north- 
easterly direction.  The  rock  is  composed  of  a  mixture  of  rounded 
water  worn  pebbles  and  of  angular  fragments  of  dark-coloured  shale 
and  mica-schist.  Whether  this  rock  belongs  to  the  same  series  as 
the  Laurie  Island  beds  or  not  I  do  not  know,  but  the  strike  is 
approximately  the  same. 

Saddle  Island  is  composed  of  a  massive  greenish  grey  wacke,  very 
similar  to  the  Laurie  Island  rocks.  The  typical  rock  of  Laurie 
Island  is  a  fine-grained  grey  wacke  of  a  blue-grey  or  greenish-grey 
colour.  To  the  naked  eye  it  appears  almost  homogeneous:  the 
only  constituents  that  can  be  recognised  are  some  minute  rounded 
quartz  grains,  small  black  shaly  particles,  and  a  few  specks  of 
pyrites.  Thin  quartz  and  calcite  veins  traverse  the  rock  irregu- 
larly. A  microscopic  section  shows  that  the  derived  constituents 
consist  of  angular  and  sub-angular  grains,  with  a  mean  diameter 
of  about  0*2  mm.  The  great  majority  of  these  are  quartz,  originally 
of  plutonic  origin  ;  there  are  also  a  goodly  number  of  small 
crystals  of  plagioclase,  wonderfully  fresh,  some  grains  of  both 
sphene  and  zircon,   and  a  few   minute  flakes  of  biotite.     The 


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464  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh,  [i 

cemeuting  material  is  very  largely  obscured  by  a  dusty-grey  or 
brown  amorphous  substance  and  by  black  carbonaceous  matter. 
Where  the  grains  are  fairly  large  and  well  packed  this  forms  a 
sort  of  network,  in  the  meshes  of  which  lie  the  quartz  grains. 
Where  the  grains  are  not  so  close  it  is  more  distinct,  and  under 
crossed  Nicols  has  a  crypto-crystalline  appearance,  practically 
identical  with  that  of  chalcedony.  A  few  chlorite  flakes  occur 
in  it  here  and  there.  Small  veins  traverse  the  section,  some  con- 
taining calcite,  others  a  fine  quartz  mosaic.  Bedding  is  not  seen 
in  hand  specimens,  and  in  many  places  in  the  field  it  cannot 
be  made  out  either,  the  rocks  having  a  massive  character,  but 
much  traversed  by  cracks  and  faults,  shattering  them  into  irregular 
masses. 

In  other  places,  again,  the  bedding  is  distinct,  or  even  marked. 
Where  this  is  the  case  the  individual  beds  vary  in  thickness 
from  a  few  inches  to  several  feet.  Very  often  the  bedding  has 
a  contorted,  or  rather,  wavy  character,  more  conspicuous  when 
viewed  from  some  distance  off. 

On  some  of  the  cliffs  faulting  is  very  marked,  which  has 
probably  given  rise  to  the  general  shattered  condition  of  the 
rocks.  Most  of  the  faults  noted  are  strike-faults.  When  the 
faults  are  not  so  much  in  evidence,  the  rock  shows  in  places  well- 
marked  jointing,  often  very  difficult  to  distinguish  from  bedding 
planes. 

Varieties  of  the  greywacke  occur.  These  are  of  very  local 
occurrence,  and  are  not  usually  sharply  defined,  but  shade  off 
imperceptibly  into  the  common  type.  The  following  are  the 
principal  varieties : — 

1.  Greywacke  conglomerate.  Contains  rounded  quartz  pebbles, 
not  usually  larger  than  \  in.  in  diameter,  and  pieces  of  dark  slate 
or  shale,  rounded  or  flattened  angular  laminse,  up  to  f  in.  in  length. 
This  is  an  extremely  hard,  tough  rock,  intimately  pervaded  by  the 
siliceous  matrix,  so  that  the  grains  seem  to  fade  into  each  other  and 
into  the  cementing  material,  instead  of  having  sharp  outlines.  When 
fractured,  the  component  pebbles  break  across,  but  on  natural 
weathered  surface  the  matrix  gives  way  sooner,  leaving  the  indi- 
vidual pebbles  sticking  out  as  in  a  conglomerate.  A  microscopic 
section  shows  that  the  allothigenic  or  derived  materials  are  practically 


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Ill 

To  prevent  delay,  authors  residing  abroad  should   appoint  some  one 
residing  in  this  country  to  correct  their  proofs. 

4.  Additions  to  a  Paper  after  it  has  been  finally  handed  in  for 
publication,  if  accepted  by  the  Council,  will  be  treated  and  dated  as 
separate  communications,  and  may,  or  may  not,  be  printed  immediately 
after  the  original  paper. 

5.  Brief  Abstracts  op  Transactions  Papers  will  be  published  in 
the  Proceedings,  provided  they  are  sent  along  with  the  original  paper. 

6.  Separate  Issue  of  Reprints;  Author's  Free  and  Additional 
Copies. — As  soon  as  the  final  revise  of  a  Transactions  paper  has  been 
returned,  or  as  soon  as  the  sheet  in  which  the  last  part  of  a  Proceedings 
paper  appears  is  ready  for  press,  a  certain  number  of  separate  copies  or 
reprints,  in  covers  bearing  the  title  of  the  paper  and  the  name  of  the 
author,  are  printed  off  and  placed  on  sale.  The  date  of  such  separate 
publication  will  be  printed  on  each  paper. 

The  author  receives  fifty  of  these  reprints  free,  and  may  have  any 
reasonable  number  of  additional  copies  at  a  fixed  scale  of  prices  which 
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the  author  should,  immediately  after  receiving  his  first  proof,  notify 
to  the  printer  the  number  of  additional  copies  required. 

7.  Index  Slips. — In  order  to  facilitate  the  compilation  of  Subject 
Indices,  and  to  secure  that  due  attention  to  the  important  points  in  a 
paper  shall  be  given  in  General  Catalogues  of  Scientific  Literature  and 
in  Abstracts  by  Periodicals,  every  author  is  requested  to  return  to  the 
Secretary  along  with  his  final  proof  a  brief  index  (on  the  model  given 
below),  of  the  points  in  it  which  he  considers  new  or  important.  These 
indices  will  be  edited  by  the  Secretary,  and  incorporated  in  Separate 
Index  Slips,  to  be  issued  with  each  part  of  the  Proceedings  and 
Transactions. 


MODEL  INDEX. 

Schafer,  E.  A.— On  the  Existence  within  the  Liver  Cells  of  Channels  which  can 
be  directly  injected  from  the  Blood-vessels.    Proc.  Roy.  See.  Ed  in.,  voL      , 
1902,  pp. 
Cells,  Liver, — Intra-cellular  Canaliculi  in. 

E.  A.  Schafer.    Proc.  Roy.  Soc.  Edin.,  vol.        ,  1902,  pp. 
Liver, — Injection  within  Cells  of. 

E.  A.  Schafer.    Proc.  Roy.  Soc  Edin.,  vol.         ,  1902,  pp. 


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IV  CONTENTS. 

PAGE 

A  La>K)ratory  Apparatus  for  Measuring  the  lateral  Strains 
in  Tension  and  Compression  Members,  with  some 
Applications  to  the  Measui-ement  of  the  Elastic 
Constants  of  Metals.  By  E.  G.  Coker,  M.A.  (Cantab.), 
D.Sc.  (Edin.),  F.R.S.E.,  Professor  of  Mechanical 
Engineering  and  Applied  Mathematics,  City  and 
Guilds  Technical  College,  Finsbury,  London.  (With 
a  Plate),  .  .  .  .  .        452 

{Issued  separately  March  3,  1905.) 

On   Astronomical  Seeing.      By  Dr  J.   Halm,   Lecturer  in 

Astronomy  in  the  University  of  Edinburgh,     .  .        45^ 

{Issu-ed  separate! p  March  3,  1905.) 

On  the  Graptolite-bearing  Rocks  of  the  South  Orkneys. 
By  J.  H.  Harvey  Pirie,  B.Sc,  M.B.,  Ch.B.  {Com- 
muntcated  by  Dr  Horne,  F.R.S.)  With  a  Note  by 
Dr  Peach  on  Specimens  from  the  South  Orkneys,       . '     463 


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PROCEEDINGS 


OF  THE 


ROYAL  SOCIETY  OF  EDINBURGH. 

SESSION  1904-5. 


No.  VII.]  VOL.    XXV.  [Pp.  466-692. 


CONTENTS. 


PAOE 


A  Possible  Explanation  of  the  Formation  of  the  Moon. 

By  George  Romanes,  C.E.,    .  .  .471 

{Issued  separately  March  30,  1905.) 

On  Pennella :  a  Crustacean  parasitic  on  the  Finner  Whale 
(Batxjwptei'a  musculus),  {Ahdract.)  By  Sir  "William 
Turner,  K.C.B.,  LL.D.,  .  .  .  .480 

(Issued  separately  March  30,  1905.) 

The  Diameters  of  Twisted  Threads,  with  an  Account  of 
the  History  of  the  Mathematical  Setting  of  Cloths. 
By  Thomas  Oliver,  B.Sc.  (Lond.  &  Edin.).      {Com- 
municated by  Dr  C.  G.  Knott),  .  .481 
{Issued  separately  April  8,  1905.) 

[CoTUinned  <*n  page  iv  of  Cover, 


^EDINBURGH: 
PUBLISHBD  BY  ROBERT  GRANT  &  SON,  107  Princes  Strbbt,  and 
WILLIAMS  k  NORGATE,  14  Hknkietta.  Street,  Covent  Garden,  London. 

MDCCCCV. 
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KEGULATIONS  KEGAKDING  THE  PUBLICATION  OF 
PAPERS  IN  THE  PEOCEEDINGS  AND  TRANS- 
ACTIONS  OF  THE  SOCIETY. 

The  Council  beg  to  direct  the  attention  of  authors  of  communications  to 
tlie  Society  to  the  following  Regulations,  which  have  been  drawn  up  io 
order  to  accelerate  the  publication  of  the  Proceedings  and  Transactions, 
and  to  utilise  as  widely  and  as  fairly  as  possible  the  funds  which  the 
Society  devotes  to  the  publication  of  Scientific  and  Literary  Researches. 

1.  Manuscript  op  Papers. — As  soon  as  any  paper  has  been  passed 
for  publication,  either  in  its  original  or  in  any  altered  form,  and  has  been 
made  ready  for  publication  by  the  author,  it  is  sent  to  the  printer, 
whether  it  has  been  read  or  not. 

The  *  copy '  should  be  written  on  large  sheets  of  paper,  on  one  side 
only,  and  the  pages  should  be  clearly  numbered.  The  MS.  must  be 
easily  legible,  preferably  typewritten,  and  must  be  absolutely  in  its  final 
form  for  printing ;  so  that  corrections  in  proof  shall  be  as  few  as  possible, 
and  shall  not  cause  overrunning  in  the  lines  or  pages  of  the  proof.  All 
tables  of  contents,  references  to  plates  or  illustrations  in  the  text,  etc., 
must  be  in  their  proper  places,  with  the  page  numbers  left  blank ;  and 
spaces  must  be  indicated  for  the  insertion  of  illustrations  that  are  to 
appear  in  the  text. 

2.  Illustrations.— All  illustrations  must  be  drawn  in  a  form  im- 
mediately suitable  for  reproduction;  and  such  illustrations  as  can  be 
reproduced  by  photographic  processes  should,  so  far  as  possible,  be 
preferred.  Drawings  to  be  reproduced  as  line  blocks  should  be  made 
with  Indian  ink  (deadened  with  yellow  if  of  bluish  tone),  preferably  on 
fine  white  bristol  board,  free  from  folds  or  creases ;  smooth,  clean  lines 
or  sharp  dots,  but  no  washes  or  colours  should  be  used.  If  the  drawings 
are  done  on  a  large  scale,  to  be  afterwards  reduced  by  photography,  any 
lettering  or  other  legend  must  be  on  a  corresponding  scale. 

If  an  author  finds  it  inconvenient  to  furnish  such  drawings,  the  Society 
will  have  the  figures  re-drawn  at  his  expense ;  but  this  will  cause  delay. 

When  the  illustrations  are  to  form  plates,  a  scheme  for  the  arrange- 
ment of  the  figures  (in  quarto  plates  for  the  Transactions,  in  octavo  for 
the  Proceedings)  must  be  given,  and  numbering  and  lettering  indicated. 

3.  Proofs. — In  general,  a  first  proof  and  a  revise  of  each  paper  will 
be  sent  to  the  author,  whose  address  should  be  indicated  on  the  MS. 
If  further  proofs  are  required,  owing  to  corrections  or  alterations  for 
which  the  printer  is  not  responsible,  the  expense  of  such  proofs  and 
corrections  will  be  charged  against  the  author. 

All  proofs  must,  if  possible,  be  returned  within  one  week,  addressed  to 
The  Secretary,  Royal  Society^  Mound,  Edinhargh,  and  not  to  the  printer. 

[Continued  on  page  m  of  Cover, 

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1904-5.]     GrraptolUe-bearing  Bocks  of  the  SotUh  Orkneys.      465 

the  same  as  in  the  normal  greywacke,  ue,  pebbles  of  quartz  and 
chalcedony,  pieces  of  shale,  small  crystals  of  plagioclase,  a  few 
grains  of  sphene  and  zircon,  and  biotite  flakes.  Of  the  larger 
quartz  pebbles,  some  at  least  are  typical  plutonic  quartz,  with  lines 
of  fluid  inclusions,  but  showing  strain  shadows :  the  majority 
seem  to  be  derived  from  some  metamorphic  rock — pebbles  which 
in  ordinary  transmitted  light  appear  quite  uniform,  between 
crossed  Nicols  are  seen  to  "be  composed  of  a  mosaic  of  different 
crystallographic  individuals.  The  cementing  material  is  not  so 
obvious  as  one  would  expect  from  a  naked-eye  examination,  as 
the  interstices  between  the  larger  pebbles  are  filled  up  by  smaller 
fragments,  chiefly  of  quartz.  It  has  the  same  chalcedonic 
appearance  as  in  the  typical  greywacke,  but  green  chloritic  flakes 
are  more  abundant.  There  are  numerous  small  veins  of  both 
calcite  and  quartz  :  one  of  the  latter,  about  0  03  mm.  in  width,  was 
observed  running  right  through  some  of  the  large  quartz  pebbles. 

2.  Greywacke-slate.  Has  a  fine  laminar  structure  parallel  to  the 
places  of  deposition,  is  of  a  lighter  grey  colour,  and  splits  up  readily 
into  thin  laminse.  There  is  no  true  slaty  cleavage  developed, 
however. 

3.  Greywacke,  showing  gneissic  banding  and  folding.  This  was 
only  got  in  one  patch  of  very  limited  extent. 

Shaly  rocks  also  occur.  In  one  situation  only  were  regular  beds 
of  shale  found  alternating  with  layers  of  greywacke.  Commonly 
the  shale  occurs  simply  as  patches  in  the  greywacke,  seemingly 
irregularly  mixed  up  with  it,  or  with  ill-defined  borders  shading 
oflf  into  the  greywacke.  The  shale  is  much  cleaved  and  broken, 
the  individual'pieces  being  bent  and  curved,  and  showing  numerous 
slickensided  faces,  the  result  of  the  crushing  and  faulting  to  which 
it  has  been  subjected.  Microscopically  it  shows  much  brownish- 
grey  amorphous  material  and  black  carbonaceous  matter  in  the 
lines  of  stratification — forming  a  sort  of  network  in  the  silica 
matrix.  Interstratified  lenticular-shaped  patches  occur,  which  are 
much  freer  horn  amorphous  matter.  With  crossed  Nicols  these 
resolve  themselves  into  a  crypto-crystalline  chalcedony,  identical  in 
character  with  the  cementing  material  of  the  greywackes. 

The  largest  development  of  the  shale  occurs  on  a  small  islet  off 
the  south  coast  of  Laurie  Island,  near  Cape  Dundas — its  eastern 

PROC.  ROY.  SOC.  EDIN. — VOL.  XXV.  30 


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466  Proceedings  of  BoycU  Society  of  Edinburgh.         [i 

end — and  which  has  been  called  Graptolite  Island.  Here  three 
fossils  were  got.  One  of  these  is  a  graptolite,  which  has  been 
examined  by  Miss  Elles,  who  considers  it  to  be  part  of  a  Pleuro- 
graptus.  This  would  make  the  bed  correspond  in  age  with  the 
Hartfell  shales — almost  the  uppermost  beds  of  the  Ordovician 
system.  The  others  have  been  kindly  examined  for  me  by  Dr 
Peach.  As  is  seen  in  his  Note,  he  considers  them  to  be  parts  of  a 
Phyllocarid  crustacean,  probably  nearly  allied  to  Discinocaris^  a 
form  typical  in  this  country  of  the  Lower  Birkhill  shales,  at  the 
base  of  the  Upper  Silurian. 

If  this  is  the  case,  then  there  is  here  an  association  in  one  bed  of 
two  forms  which,  in  the  South  of  Scotland,  are  characteristic  of 
two  different  but  at  the  same  time  closely  contiguous  zones. 

As  regards  the  structure  of  the  island  as  a  whole,  it  is  un- 
fortunate that  the  data  regarding  the  dip  and  strike  of  the  rocks 
are  rather  meagre.  This  is  due  partly  to  the  fact  that  so  much  of 
the  area  is  covered  by  ice,  and  partly  because  in  so  many  places 
the  dip  could  not  be  made  out.  The  most  common  strike  of  the 
rocks  is  north-westerly,  varying  from  N.N.W.  to  W.N:W., 
the  dip  being  in  most  cases  at  a  high  angle  north-easterly  or 
south-westerly.  One  definite  anticlinal  axis  was  observed,  running 
in  a  N.N.W.  and  S.S.E.  direction.  In  a  few  localities  other 
directions  of  strike  were  noted,  but  these  were  nowhere  of  large 
extent,  and  are  probably  only  local  contortions. 

Laurie  Island  itself,  although  its  greatest  length  is  in  an  E.N.K 
and  W.S.W.  direction,  consists  of  a  series  of  peninsulas  and  hill 
ridges,  running  in  a  general  N.W.  and  S.E.  direction,  with  deep 
bays  between  adjacent  peninsulas,  and  usually  low  cols  crossing  the 
island  from  the  head  of  a  bay  on  the  north  side  to  the  head  of 
another  on  the  south  side. 

The  same  structure  is  repeated  in  the  group  as  a  whole,  which, 
though  it  extends  furthest  in  an  east  and  west  direction,  is  cut  up 
by  two  large  straits,  which  cross  it  in  about  a  N.N.W,  and  S.S.E. 
direction. 

These  two  sets  of  facts — the  strike  of  the  rocks  and  the  general 
alignment  of  the  hill  ridges — lead  one  to  believe  we  have  here  to 
deal  with  a  series  of  plications  whose  axes  run  in  a  general  N.  W. 
and  S.E.  direction — probably  rather  nearer  N.N.W.  and  S.S.K 


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1904-5.]     GraptoHte-bearirig  Bocks  of  the  South  Orkneys,      467 

In  the  only  previous  reference  to  the  structure  of  these  islands 
that  I  have  been  able  to  find,  viz.,  the  reports  of  M.  Dumont 
D'Urville's  voyage,*  their  only  landing  seems  to  have  been  on  a 
small  islet  about  half  a  mile  from  Saddle  Island,  where  they  report 
greyish  limestone  and  phyllitic  shales,  with  a  K.N.W.  and  S.S.E. 
strike,  and  inclined  at  over  60"*. 

Although  geographically  situated  nearer  the  South  Shetlands 
and  Graham  Land,  the  strike  of  the  rocks  leads  one  to  consider 
whether  these  islands  are  not  more  intimately  connected  with 


2000  fothom  line. 

Alternative  line.     Position  doubtful. 

No  soundings. 

South  America.  In  this  connection  it  is  important  to  consider 
some  geological  facts  from  areas  further  afield.  In  the  Falkland 
Islands  the  Silurian  or  Devonian  rocks  there  are  folded  along  an 
east  and  west  axis.  South  Georgia,  composed  entirely  of  clay 
elates,  in  which  one  fossil  shell  has  been  found — of  Upper 
Palaeozoic  or  Lower  Mesozoic  Age,  according  to  Professor  Koken — 
is  stated  t  by  Dr  Andersson,  of  the  recent  Swedish  Antarctic 

*  "  Voyage  au  Pole  Sud,  sous  le  conunandement  de  M.  Dumont  D'TXrviUe,'* 
OiologiCf  par  M.  J.  Grange, 
t  Andersson,  Oeog.  Jour,^  Oct.  1902. 


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468  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh.         [sEse. 

Expedition,  to  consist  of  a  series  of  folds  along  an  axis  nearly 
parallel  to  the  long  axis  of  the  island,  ue,  a  north-west  and  south- 
east axis.  Then  the  soundings  taken  by  the  "  Scotia "  indicate 
that  the  deep  water  between  Cape  Horn  and  the  South  Shetlands 
narrows  as  we  go  eastwards  into  a  trough-like  depression  of  over 
2000  fathoms,  passing  north  of  the  South  Orkneys,  then  probably 
turning  south-eastwards,  to  become  continuous  with  the  deep  area 
of  the  Weddell  Sea. 

It  may  be,  therefore,  that  the  Andean  axis,  already  turning  east- 
wards in  Southern  Patagonia  and  Tierra  del  Fuego,  is  continued  in 
this  direction  south  of  the  Burdwood  bank,  and  then  curves  south- 
eastwards  between  the  South  Orkneys  and  South  Georgia. 

If  this  is  the  case,  then  there  is  a  relationship  established 
between  these  Silurian  rocks  of  the  South  Orkneys  and  the  Silurian 
rocks  occurring  on  both  sides  of  the  main  Andean  chain  in  Bolivia 
and  Northern  Argentina,*  and  in  the  province  of  Buenos  Aires,  in 
the  Sierra  Tandil  and  Sierra  de  la  Ventana. 

More  soundings  in  the  area  between  the  South  Orkneys,  Cape 
Horn,  and  South  Georgia  would  probably  shed  further  light 
on  this  problem ;  and  they  are  also  much  to  be  desired  between 
the  South  Orkneys  and  Graham  Land,  where  rocks  of  an  entirely 
diflferent  type  occur,  viz.,  plutonic  and  metamorphic  rocks  on  the 
Pacific  side,  and  on  the  eastern  side  Lower  Tertiary  rocks,  similar 
to  those  of  Patagonia. 

At  all  events,  the  presence  of  isolated  islands  such  as  the  South 
Orkneys  and  South  Georgia,  composed  of  sedimentary  rocks,  mostly 
inclined  at  high  angles,  and  surrounded  by  deep  water,  proves  a 
former  much  greater  extension  of  land  in  this  area.  If  they  formed 
part  of  the  Tertiary  Antarctica  postulated  by  Professor  H.  F. 
Osborn  and  many  others,  t  to  explain  the  floral  and  faunal  relation- 
ships of  S.  America,  S.  Africa,  and  Australia,  it  is  evident  from  the 
recent  soundings  X  that  the  changes  of  level  in  sea  and  land  in  this 
region  have  been  very  considerable:  it  would  now  require  an 
elevation  of  nearer  20,000  feet  than  the  10,000  assumed  by 
Professor  Osborn  as  necessary  to  unite  S.  America  with  Antarctica. 

*  Cf.  Suess,  La  Face  de  la  Terre,  vol.  i.  pp.  684-686. 
t  H.F.  Osborn,  Science,  1900,  vol.  xi  p.  666. 

X  Andersson,  loe,  cU,,  and  *'  Second  Voyage  of  *  SooUtL,^^  Scot.  Geog.  Mag., 
Jan.  1904. 


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1904-5.]     Grraptolite-bearing  Bocks  of  the  South  Orkneys.       469 

Note  by  Dr  Peach  on  Specimens  from  the  South  Orkneys. 

Two  specimens  of  black  shale,  Nos.  014  and  015,  from  the  South 
Orkneys,  have  been  submitted  to  me  by  Dr  Pirie  for  examination. 
No.  015. — In  addition  to  some  stipes  of  graptolite,  determined 
by  Miss  Elles  to  belong  to  the  genus  Pleurograpius,  there  occurs 
a  fragment  of  another  organism,  showing  a  web  of  dark  carbon- 
aceous matter,  with  a  succession  of  sub-parallel  ridges  which  appears 
to  belong  to  a  Phyllocarid  crustacean,  probably  nearly  allied  to 
Discinoearis. 

No.  014  shows  the  remains  of  what  appears  to  have  been 
another  form  of  Phyllocarid  crustacean,  preserved  in  a  dark  shining 
anthracitic  substance.  What  seems  to  be  the  carapace  is  broad 
and  smooth,  with  faint  indications  of  raised  lines  directed  outwards 
and  forwards  on  the  left  side.  Where  the  supposed  carapace 
has  broken  away  in  splitting  the  shale,  a  succession  of  bands  about 
^  inch  broad,  and  numbering  six  within  about  the  same  breadth 
backwards,  may  be  observed.  These  are  each  ornamented  with 
sub-parallel  lines  and  with  broadened  posterior  margins.  Both  the 
carapace  and  the  apparent  body  segments  are  abruptly  truncated 
posteriorly  in  the  breaking  of  the  shale. 

A  wide  experience  of  the  black  graptolite-shales  of  the  Southern 
Uplands  of  Scotland  and  North  Wales,  of  all  horizons,  from  the 
Lowest  Arenig  up  to  the  Wenlock  and  Ludlow  rocks,  has  shown 
that,  with  the  exception  of  a  few  small  hingeless  brachiopods  and 
some  glass-rope  sponges,  only  the  tests  of  chitinous  Phyllocarid 
crustaceans  have  been  met  with.  Of  these,  the  genus  Caryocaris 
characterises  the  Arenig,  Pinnocaris  the  Lowest  Hartfell  shales 
(Caradoc),  Diseinocaris  and  Peltocaris  the  Lower  Birkhill  shales 
(Lower  Llandovery),  and  Aptychopsis  and  Ceratiocaris  (the  Wenlock) 
dark  graptolitic  shales. 

The  general  style  of  ornament  found  in  the  test  of  most  of  the 
above  genera  is  that  of  the  sub-parallel  raised  lines,  which  may  be 
arranged  on  the  carapaces  almost  concentrically  to  rudely  simulate 
lines  of  growth  in  some  forms ;  but  in  Ceratiocaris  they  run  longi- 
tudinally backwards.  On  specimen  015  there  appears  to  be  a  slight 
curve  in  the  raised  lines  similar  to  what  occurs  in  Diseinocaris 
gigaSy  Jones  and   Woodward,  and   figured   in  their   monograph. 


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470  Proceedings  of  Boyal  Society  of  Edinburgh.         [i 

This  form  has  only  been  found  in  the  BiikhiU  shales  (Llandovery) 
of  Moffat,  while  the  graptolite  Pleurograptus  found  on  specimen 
015  shows  that  this  specimen  belongs  to  a  lower  horizon  (Caradoc). 
Pleurograptus  linearis,  Carruthers,  is  the  zonal  form  of  the  Upper- 
most zone  of  the  Lower  Hartfell  shales  (Caradoc)  of  Moffat.  I  do 
not,  therefore,  consider  that  any  of  the  specimens  could  be  deter- 
mined either  specifically  or  generically ;  but  if  these  organic  remains 
belong,  as  they  appear  to  do,  to  Phyllocarid  crustaceans,  their 
occurrence  along  with  graptolites  in  black  shales  in  both  the 
northern  and  southern  hemispheres  would  signify  more  than  a 
near  coincidence. 


{Ismed  separately  March  80, 1905.) 


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1904-5.]    Mr  Eomanes  on  the  Formation  of  the  Moon.         471 


A  Possible  ExplaDation  of  the  Formation  of  the  Moon. 
By  Gteorge  Romanes,  C.K 

(Read  November  21,  1904.) 

The  subject  of  the  moon's  development  has  been  dealt  with  by 
Professor  G.  H.  Darwin  by  means  of  a  highly  abstruse  mathe- 
matical analysis,  which  the  present  writer  cannot  pretend  to  be 
able  to  discuss.  He  wishes  to  point  out,  however,  that  Professor 
Darwin's  theory  requires  the  assumption  that  earth  and  moon 
formed,  at  one  time,  a  single  highly -heated  fluid  mass ;  the  theory 
being  that  the  moon  was  thrown  off  by  centrifugal  force  aided  by 
the  sun's  tidal  influence  and  synchronous  vibratory  motion  of  the 
fluid  mass. 

There  is  another  possible  explanation  of  the  formation  of  the 
moon,  that  gets  over  many  difficulties  in  explaining  its  features. 

It  is  to  suppose  that  earth  and  moon  were  separately  formed  out 
of  different  parts  of  the  same  nebula,  or  crowd  of  small  parts  which 
were  at  one  time  circulating  round  their  common  centre  of  mass 
at  great  varieties  of  distances,  in  every  plane  and  with  every 
degree  of  eccentricity,  the  whole  having  a  balance  of  moment  in 
the  plane  and  direction  in  which  earth  and  moon  are  now  revolv- 
ing. The  portions  near  the  centre  would  tend  to  collect  there  to 
fonn  the  earth,  while  the  outer  portions  gradually  collected  into 
larger  and  larger  masses  to  form  the  moon,  and  in  doing  so  built  up 
its  mass  in  such  a  way  as  to  leave  a  record,  which  it  is  the  purpose 
of  this  paper  to  endeavour  to  interpret. 

Before  considering  the  markings  on  the  moon's  surface,  the 
writer  wishes  to  show,  as  clearly  as  he  can,  how  such  a  result  as 
the  building  up  of  the  moon  in  this  way  is  possible.  All  bodies 
circulating  round  the  earth  are  subject  not  only  to  the  influence  of 
the  earth,  but  also  that  of  the  sun  and  of  each  other ;  which  must 
have  caused  great  irregularities  in  their  motions,  and  increased  the 
chances  of  collisions  among  each  other,  and  thus  gradually  reduced 


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472  Proceedings  of  Roycd  Society  of  Edivburgh,  [ 

the  number  and  increased  the  average  size ;  and  the  largest  body, 
the  moon,  would  capture  most  matter  in  this  way. 

There  is  a  very  important  difference  between  the  collisions  of 
bodies  moving  in  the  same  direction  of  revolution  and  of  those 
moving  in  opposite  directions,  which  must  be  kept  in  view.  The 
former  are  caused  principally  by  bodies  attracting  each  other ;  they 
are  not  destructive  ;  and  while  they  cause  the  mean  distances  of 
the  orbits  to  be  diminished,  they  tend  to  make  these  orbits  less 
eccentric.  The  latter  occur  at  high  speeds ;  they  are  highly 
destructive,  and  cause  the  orbits  to  become  Tnore  eccentric  The 
moon's  moment  of  momentum  round  the  earth  proves  that  it  has 
been  built  up  principally  of  bodies  having  the  same  direction  of 
revolution. 

The  several  portions  which  now  form  the  moon  must  have  long 
had  independent  orbits  round  the  earth,  and  many  may  have 
grown  to  a  considerable  size  before  being  caught  by  the  moon.  The 
moon's  mass  is  now  an  eighty-first  part  of  that  of  the  earth,  and  at 
distances  of  23,800  miles  (more  or  less,  according  to  circumstances) 
from  the  moon  its  influence  is  equal  to  that  of  the  earth.  Hence, 
when  a  small  body  having  an  independent  orbit  round  the  earth 
came  near  the  moon,  it  would  be  drawn  into  a  subsidiary  orbit  with 
the  moon's  centre  as  focus,  which,  with  reference  to  the  moon, 
would  be  a  hyperbola ;  and  the  body  might  strike  or  graze  the 
moon's  surface,  or  escape  and  keep  on  an  orbit  round  the  earth, 
much  modified  by  the  encounter,  till  some  other  close  approach, 
when  it  might  be  captured. 

With  regard  to  bodies  being  captured  by  the  earth,  if  two  equal 
masses  circulating  at  the  same  mean  distance  in  opposite  directions 
were  to  collide,  their  moments  of  momentum  would  be  mutually 
destroyed,  they  would  be  highly  heated  and  driven  to  pieces,  and 
they  would  fall  direct  to  the  earth.  So  exact  a  balance  as  this  is 
against  all  probability,  and  the  most  usual  result  of  such  collisions 
would  be  to  render  the  resultant  orbits  more  eccentric,  and  thiis 
give  increased  chances  of  further  collisions,  because  they  would 
cross  other  orbits  to  a  greater  extent.  Finally,  many  orbits  would 
be  rendered  so  eccentric  as  to  cause  the  bodies  to  graze  the  earth's 
atmosphere  at  each  revolution,  which  would  thus  reduce  the  orbit 
till  the  earth  captured  the  whole  in  small  pieces,  this  effect  being 


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1904-5.]     Mr  Romanes  on  the  Formation  of  the  Moon,         473 

aided  by  the  disintegrating  influence  of  the  atmosphere  and  of  the 
earth's  tidal  attraction.  The  earth's  atmosphere  would  thus  be  the 
first  and  principal  recipient  of  the  heat  caused  in  this  way. 
Direct  impacts  on  the  earth  would  be  rare,  and  their  marks  would 
in  time  be  effaced  by  the  various  geological  influences. 

Impacts  on  the  moon,  of  bodies  having  independent  orbits  round 
the  earth,  would  be  of  a  very  diflferent  nature  ;  these  would  often 
be  very  direct,  and  the  bodies  themselves  might  be  of  considerable 
size,  possibly  up  to  20  miles  or  more  in  diameter.  Such  bodies 
being  built  up  of  many  parts  loosely  held  together  by  their  own 
feeble  gravity,  would  be  more  like  masses  of  sand  and  dust  than 
solid  stone ;  hence  a  grazing  impact  of  such  a  body  on  the  moon 
would  be  like  a  sand-blast  which  would  liquefy  the  rock  and  plough 
out  a  straight  groove.  The  utmost  velocity  the  moon  can  produce 
by  its  attraction  is  1  '476  mile  per  second,  and  bodies  having  orbits 
round  the  earth  at  the  same  mean  distance  in  the  opposite 
direction  would,  if  they  collided,  strike  it  with  the  velocity  of  1  946 
mile  per  second,  and  it  would  be  struck  by  bodies  having  orbits 
within  its  own,  as  well  as  by  others  beyond  it ;  thus  velocities  of 
impact  might  range  from  1  '4  mile  to  even  2  miles  per  second  on 
rare  occasions.  These  velocities  represent  energies  capable  of. 
raising  the  temperature  of  the  bodies  striking  by  5200**  Fahr.  to 
10600*  Fahr.,  or  rather  of  raising  the  temperature  not  only  of  the 
bodies  themselves,  but  also  of  much  of  the  moon's  surface,  to  an 
extent  sufficient  to  liquefy  them ;  while  the  mechanical  force  of 
the  impact  would  cause  much  of  the  surrounding  surface  to  be 
forced  up  into  irregular  mountain  ranges  all  round,  and  cause 
great  splashings  of  liquid  rock  from  the  hollows  thus  formed,  and 
great  surgings  to  and  fro  of  the  liquid  rock  within  them ;  and  no 
doubt  gases  would  be  formed  and  fly  off,  till  the  liquid  rock  had 
time  to  cooL 

Besides  being  struck  by  single  bodies,  the  moon  may  often  have 
been  struck  and  grazed  by  nebulie — that  is  to  say,  swarms  of  small 
bodies  which  had  sufficient  moments  of  momentum  about  their 
centres  of  mass  to  keep  them  from  aggregating  more  closely. 

Impacts  of  large  bodies  having  independent  orbits  round  the  sun 
would  be  very  rare,  and  it  is  doubtful  if  any  would  leave  marks 
large  enough  to  be  seen  from  the  earth. 


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474  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh,  [ 

The  writer  has  been  referred  to  Professor  N.  S.  Shaler's  great 
essay  in  the  Smithsonian  Contribuiiofu  to  Knowledge  to  study  his 
views,  and  to  discoss  them  herein. 

Professor  Shaler  does  not  discuss  the  manner  of  the  moon's  growth 
except  by  a  reference  to  Professor  G.  H.  Darwin's  theory,  a  modified 
form  of  which  he  apparently  accepts  (page  3  of  his  essay),  and  he 
makes  the  following  assumption  on  pp.  31-32:  "The  most 
reasonable  view  of  the  interior  condition  of  the  moon  when  its 
Yulcanoids  (craters)  were  in  activity  is  that  it  was  in  a  state  of 
essential  fluidity  with  a  relatively  thin  crust."  This  is  making 
use  of  a  popular  idea  that  the  moon,  like  all  other  cosmic  bodies, 
must  at  one  time  have  been  so  hot  as  to  be  fluid.  This  is  not  a 
scientific  view,  as  no  proof  of  it  is  possible.  Professor  Shaler 
makes  no  attempt  to  show  how  the  moon  became  so  hot  as  to  be 
fluid,  and  on  page  48,  under  "  Adjustments  of  the  Surface  to  Con- 
traction," he  gives  the  following  strong  evidence  that  leads  to  a  con- 
trary inference :  "  On  the  earth  he  (the  geologist)  sees  in  the  ample 
folds  of  the  sea-basins  and  of  the  continents,  as  well  as  in  many 
folded  mountain  chains,  what  he  takes  to  be  evidence  of  a  long- 
continued  accommodation  of  an  anciently  cooled  crust  to  a  central 
mass  which  is  ever  losing  heat.  On  the  moon  he  finds  what,  in 
proportion  to  the  size  of  that  sphere,  is  surely  not  the  hundredth 

part  of  such  action What  then  is  the  meaning  of  this 

startling  diversity  in  the  orogenic  history  of  the  two  spheres?" 
Also  on  page  4  Professor  Shaler  states  the  relative  densities  of  the 
moon  and  earth  as  six  to  ten ;  but  he  does  not  draw  the  inference 
that  the  moon  has  been  less  subjected  to  gravitational  compression, 
and  therefore  has  had  less  internal  heating  than  the  earth ;  indeed, 
the  influence  of  mass  in  causing  the  heating  of  cosmic  bodies 
seems  not  to  have  been  sufficiently  present  to  his  mind.  Professor 
Shaler  requires  the  presence  of  fluid  lava  a  short  way  below  the 
surface  of  the  moon  to  explain  the  formation  of  vulcanoids  (craters) 
by  a  rise  and  fall  of  liquid  lava  through  holes  in  the  crust,  which 
he  supposes  have  been  formed  by  the  help  of  gases  like  slow 
boiling;  and  he  accounts  for  the  formation  of  terraces  on  the 
inside  of  the  surrounding  walls  of  the  vidcanoids  by  the  different 
levels  at  which  the  lava  successively  stood.  These  terraces  are 
very  irregular,  and  by  no  means  continuously  horizontal,  and  they 


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1904-6.]     Mr  Eomanes  on  the  Formation  of  the  Moon,         475 

occur  outside  the  crater  walls  as  well  as  inside;  but  the  writer 
does  not  find  that  Professor  Shaler  accounts  for  those  on  the  out- 
side. In  discussing  G.  K.  Gilbert's  hypothesis,  that  the  craters 
were  due  to  impacts,  he  rejects  it,  because,  he  says  in  a  footnote 
(page  12),  the  masses  or  bolides  would  have  struck  with  velocities 
that  would  have  raised  their  temperature  more  than  150,000 
degrees  (scale  not  stated).  He  (probably  after  Gilbert)  is  thinking 
of  velocities  of  7  J  miles  per  second  or  more.  The  possibility  of 
such  masses  (bolides)  having  always  been  in  company  with  the 
earth  and  moon  has  not  occurred  to  him ;  and  he  objects  (page  12) 
that  such  impacts  would  have  caused  much  cracking  of  the  moon's 
surface — thinking,  no  doubt,  of  hard  masses  striking  stone,  but 
not  considering  that  the  bodies  striking  might  have  been  more 
like  heaps  of  loose  material  moving  generally  with  the  velocity  of 
only  1 J  mile  per  second. 

Again,  Professor  Shaler  thinks  that  the  maria  must  have  been 
formed,  each  by  the  impact  of  one  or  more  bolides  with  planetary 
velocities  (page  1 7),  and  he  considers  the  great  amount  of  melting 
of  rock  they  could  produce  ;  but  he  does  not  sufficiently  consider 
that  a  mass  moving  at  such  velocity,  instead  of  melting  a  great 
quantity  of  rock,  would  melt  only  a  moderate  quantity,  and  spend 
much  of  its  energy  in  driving  the  melted  rock  right  away  from 
the  moon  in  a  great  splash. 

Professor  Shaler  has  taken  an  immense  amount  of  care,  and 
given  many  years  of  labour  to  accumulate  facts  as  to  the  moon, 
and  he  has  stated  those  facts  with  great  impartiality  for  the 
benefit  of  science;  but  in  explaining  the  causes  at  work  in  pro- 
ducing them,  the  writer  thinks  he  has  started  from  wrong 
premises,  and  found  difficulties  that  disappear  when  the  true 
causes  become  known. 

The  writer  will  now  state  his  views  as  to  the  cause  of  some  of 
the  principal  lunar  formations.  He  thinks  that  the  circular  or 
slightly  elliptical  craters  have  been  formed  by  the  impacts  of  bodies 
belonging  to  the  earth's  system,  of  all  sizes  up  to  20  miles  or  more 
in  diameter.  The  floors  of  these  craters  are  in  general  much 
depressed  below  the  surrounding  surface,  and  the  crater  walls  are 
sometimes  of  such  great  elevations  as  17,000  feet  or  more  above 
the  floors,   while  the  diameter  of  the  craters  varies  from  the 


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476  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Ediiiburgh,  [sbs. 

smallest  size  that  can  be  seen  up  to  at  least  1 40  miles.  Some  of 
the  crater  floors  are  above  the  general  level,  such  as  Gassendi  close 
to  Mare  Humorum,  and  some  more  nearly  at  the  same  level,  when 
thej  are  situated  in  or  near  the  maria.  The  general  characteristic, 
however,  of  those  that  are  not  near  the  maria  is  to  have  their  floors 
much  depressed,  even  to  the  extent  of  thousands  of  feet  in  some 
cases.  The  forms  of  these  craters  can  be  fairly  well  imitated  by 
firing  bullets  into  a  mass  of  lead.  The  cavity  thus  formed  has 
always  a  raised  burr  round  it,  is  much  larger  in  diameter  than  the 


bullet,  and  is  generally  fairly  round  even  when  the  bullet  strikes 
obliquely,  if  not  so  obliquely  as  to  glance  off  altogether.  There  is 
always  a  small  cone  left  in  the  cavity,  and  the  surface  of  the  whole 
cavity  can  be  seen  to  glow  red-hot  immediately  after  the  shot  is 
fired.  In  the  case  here  illustrated  the  bullets  were  elongated 
leaden  ones  -22  inch  in  diameter,  and  the  cavities  were  '44  inch 
diameter.  The  three  shots  down  the  middle  were  fired  perpen- 
dicular and  the  others  obliquely,  but  not  at  measured  angles  ; 
however,  the  mark  on  the  right  of  the  centre  was  roughly  estimated 
to  be  at  about  45*. 


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1904-5.]     Mr  Eomanes  on  the  Formation  of  the  Moon,  477 

The  velocity  of  impacfc  in  these  experiments  is  not  known,  but 
might  have  been  about  1200  feet  per  second;  and,  no  doubt, 
bullets  fired  at  higher  velocities  would  form  cavities  wider  in 
proportion  to  the  bullet.  A  velocity  of  1200  feet  per  second  is 
from  one-sixth  to  one-ninth  of  the  velocities  we  are  dealing  with 
in  the  case  of  the  moon,  and  the  body  striking  is  a  compact  one ; 
whereas,  as  has  been  shown  above,  the  bodies  striking  the  moon 
were  by  no  means  compact ;  and  the  circumstances  are  so  different 
that  the  analogy  between  the  bullet  marks  and  the  lunar  craters 
will  not  be  very  close.  However,  the  experiments  make  it  clear 
that  cavities  so  formed  on  the  moon's  surface  may  be  expected  to 
be  greatly  larger  in  diameter  than  the  body  that  caused  them,  and 
generally  fairly  round. 

The  great  radial  streaks,  notably  those  from  Tycho,  are  probably 
caused  by  splashes  of  liquid  rock  comminuted  and  blown  out  by 
the  gas  formed  at  the  same  time.  Their  great  brilliancy  at  full 
moon  is  probably  due  to  the  surface  being  rough — that  is,  covered 
with  small  particles,  and  not  appearing  vitrified  like  the  rest  of 
the  moon's  surface.  As  no  shadows  can  be  seen  at  full  moon, 
rough  surfaces  must  then  appear  brighter  than  under  indirect 
illumination.  Although  these  streaks  extend  to  great  distances, 
such  as  1000  miles,  it  is  obvious  that  the  initial. velocity,  neces- 
sary to  project  them  from  their  source  to  any  other  part  of  the 
moon's  surface,  is  much  less  than  the  moon  caused  by  its  attraction 
on  the  bodies  that  produced  them;  and  therefore  this  cause  of 
them  is  quite  within  the  limits  of  possibility. 

The  irregular  terraces  or  wrinkles,  seen  on  both  the  inner  and 
the  outer  slopes  of  the  circular  moimtain  rings,  and  particularly 
well  seen  in  Copernicus,  are  probably  caused  by  the  powerful  side 
thrust  that  raised  them  up. 

The  cones  inside  the  craters  are  evidence  that  part  of  the  body 
striking  was  unmelted,  and  was  piled  up  in  a  heap  or  heaps  near 
the  centre,  and  cemented  together  by  the  liquid  rock  surging  to 
and  fro.  The  absence  of  cones  in  some  craters  shows  that  the 
whole  has  been  melted,  either  at  first  or  by  lava  from  other  sources, 
such  as  molten  lava  being  thrown  in  by  the  violent  surgings  of 
the  maria  when  they  were  formed. 

The  Valley  of  the  Alps  has  all  the  appearance  of  having  been 


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478  Proceedings  of  Boyal  Society  of  JSdinburgh,         [i 

ploughed  out  by  the  grazing  impact  of  a  moonlet.  Its  floor  is 
level  with  Mare  Imbrium,  and  its  sides  are  nearly  vertical ;  hence 
it  may  have  been  scoured  through  by  white-hot  lava  from  the 
Mare  Imbrium  when  that  mare  was  violently  suiging  on  its  for- 
mation. There  are  numerous  features  of  the  nature  of  the  Valley 
of  the  Alps  on  the  moon's  surface,  notably  in  the  region  of  craters 
Albategnius  and  Ptolemaeus,  and  also  in  the  region  south  of  Mare 
Serenitatis.  These  are  arranged  in  series  of  parallel  lines,  and 
may  be  due  to  the  grazing  impact  of  swarms. 

A  large  portion  of  the  moon's  surface  is  covered  with  the  maria, 
some  of  which  have  a  roughly  circular  outline,  such  as  Mare 
Imbrium,  Mare  Serenitatis,  and  Mare  Crisium,  which  seems  to 
indicate  that  each  is  the  result  of  some  single  great  catastrophe. 
These  may  have  been  formed  by  the  impact  of  a  nebula  or  swarm 
of  bodies ;  and  the  mountain  ranges  bordering  them,  such  as  the 
Alps  and  Apennines  bordering  Mare  Imbrium,  may  have  been  the 
result  of  the  same  catastrophe  which  formed  the  sea  they  are 
associated  with.  These  mountain  ranges  have  all  the  appearance 
of  masses  of  matter  thrown  down  in  a  sidelong  heap  and  splashed 
over  with  liquid  rock.  There  is  much  appearance  on  the  sur&ce 
of  the  maria  of  their  having  been  in  commotion,  and  indeed  they 
must  have  been  in  violent  commotion  when  they  were  formed. 
Many  long  ridges  on  their  surfaces  show  that  they  have  not  quite 
come  to  a  level  surface  tiD  they  were  too  viscous  to  do  so.  These 
ridges  seem  to  indicate  a  creeping  together  of  the  lava  from 
opposite  sides  when  it  was  nearly  solid.  The  surfaces  of  the  maria 
are  generally  darker  than  the  rest  of  the  moon's  surface,  owing,  no 
doubt,  to  their  comparative  smoothness  rather  than  to  any  differ- 
ence in  the  kind  of  rock ;  obviously,  a  polished  surface  would  look 
black  at  full  moon,  if  not  at  the  centre  of  its  disc. 

A  very  interesting  feature,  that  may  be  noticed  more  or  less  on 
all  parts  of  the  moon's  surface,  is  the  immense  number  of  old 
craters  and  mountain  ranges  that  have  been  overwhelmed  by  the 
lava  of  the  maria,  or  battered  down  by  more  recent  formations  ; 
which  shows  that  the  formation  of  those  craters  and  maria  is  no 
casual  occurrence,  depending  on  the  chance  meeting  of  meteors 
from  outer  space,  but  the  natural  process  by  which  the  moon's 
mass  has  been  built  up. 


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1904-6.]     Mr  Romanes  on  the  Formation  of  the  Moon,  479 

It  may  finally  be  suggested  that  the  sadden  accession  of  large 
quantities  of  matter,  such  as  that  of  a  mare,  to  the  moon's  surface, 
might  slightly  alter  its  balance,  and  cause  it  to  turn  a  somewhat 
different  face  to  the  earth.  The  frequent  occurrence  of  such 
changes  would  be  in  favour  of  its  assuming  the  true  form  of 
equilibrium  even  although  it  has  never  been  fluid;  and  all  in- 
fluences to  which  it  has  been  subjected  would  have  the  same 
tendency. 

The  writer  has  heard,  since  this  paper  was  read,  that  former 
attempts  have  been  made  to  illustrate  the  formation  of  lunar 
craters  by  firing  bullets ;  but  he  has  heard  of  no  former  attempt 
to  explain  the  whole  formation  of  the  moon's  mass  as  due  to 
impacts  of  bodies  which  have  always  been  part  of  the  earth's 
system,  in  the  manner  explained  above. 

He  wishes  to  state  that  he  is  greatly  indebted  to  Mr  Heath  of 
the  Koyal  Observatory  for  help  of  every  kind  in  gaining  informa- 
tion, and  for  the  slides  which  were  shown  in  illustration  of  this 
paper. 


{Issued  separately  March  30, 1905.) 


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480  Proceedings  of  Boyal  Society  of  JEdiriburgh.  [: 


On  Pennella :  a  Crustacecm  paxasitic  on  the  Finner  Whale 
(Balsmoptera  musculus).  By  Sir  William  Turner,  K.C.B., 
LL.D. 

In  this  memoir  the  author  described  a  Pennella  found  attached 
to  the  back  of  a  BdUtnoptera  musculus,  specimens  of  which  were 
given  to  him  in  1903  by  Mr  Chr.  Castberg.  The  specimens  were 
of  the  same  species  as  the  Pennella  baUmoptera  described  by  Keren 
and  Danielssen  in  1857,  and  found  infesting  B.  rostrata.  The 
species  is  a  giant  Copepod,  and  the  longest  examples  measured 
about  12^  inches. 

The  description  included  a  short  historical  introduction  to  the 
genus,  an  account  of  the  external  characters  and  internal  anatomy 
of  the  species,  its  comparison  with  other  species,  and  the  attach- 
ment to  one  of  the  specimens  of  Conchoderma  VirgcUa.  The 
memoir,  with  illustrations,  will  appear  in  the  Transactions  of  the 
Society. 


(Issued  separately  March  80,  1905.) 


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1904-5.]  Mr  T.  Oliver  on  Diameters  of  Twisted  Threads,      481 


The  Diameters  of  Twisted  Threads,  with  an  Aocount  of 
the  History  of  the  MathematioeJ  Setting  of  Cloths. 
By  Thomas  Oliver,  B.Sc.  (Lond.  &  Edin.).  Communicated 
by  Dr  C.  G.  Knott. 

(MS.  received  January  27,  1906.    Read  March  20,  1905.) 

During  the  last  generation  the  idea  of  reducing  the  **  setting  " 
of  cloths  to  mathematical  accuracy  has  heen  gradually  taking  hold 
of  the  minds  of  thinking  men  in  the  various  textile  trades.  That 
this  end  is  perfectly  attainable  is  perhaps  an  open  question,  but 
there  can  be  no  doubt  that  the  investigation  of  such  problems 
most  lead  to  a  more  satisfactory  knowledge  of  the  factors  which 
determine  the  construction  of  fabrics. 

The  base  from  which  these  "  setting "  theories  begin  is  natur- 
ally the  diameter  of  the  thread,  since  the  "set"  of  a  cloth,  i.e. 
the  number  of  threads  in  some  unit  distance,  usually  the  inch, 
made  in  any  one  weave  or  scheme  of  interlacing,  is  inversely 
proportional  to  the  diameter  of  the  thread  employed  in  the 
construction  of  the  cloth.  Clearly,  then,  the  first  step  in  this 
investigation  must  be  the  determination  of  the  diameters  of  the 
numerous  "  counts  "  or  numbers  of  yams  in  the  various  materials 
which  are  in  use  in  the  textile  industries.  But  this  is  by  no 
means  such  an  easy  task  as  it  may  seem  at  first  sight.  The 
diameter  of  a  thread  is  neither  easily  measured  at  any  one  section, 
nor  a  constant  quantity  throughout  its  length.  Especially  is  this 
the  case  with  woollen  yarns,  in  which  the  fibres  projecting  from 
the  body  of  the  thread  in  every  conceivable  direction  renders  the 
averaging  up  of  the  section  a  tedious  and  often  unsatisfactory 
operation. 

The  history  of  the  mathematical  setting  of  cloths  is,  however 
not  confined  to  the  last  generation.  The  earliest  record  of  a 
systematic  attempt  to  attain  this  end  is  preserved  in  the  British 
Museum  in  a  copy  of  Maihematical  Sleaing  Tables,  calculated 
by  Mr  Joseph  Beaumont,  a  wiiter  on  the  Irish  linen  trade  in 
1712.     He  recognised  that  the  setting  of  cloths  should  be  based 

PROC.  ROY.  SOC.  EDIN. — VOL.  XXV.  31 


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482  Proceedings  of  Roycd  Society  of  EdvnJtmrgh.  [i 

on  the  diameter  of  the  thread,  although  he  erroneously  applied 
this  term,  not  to  the  actual  diameter,  but  to  what  was  really  the 
pitch  of  the  threads  in  the  warp,  i.e.  the  diameter  of  the  thread 
plus  the  space  between  the  threads.  We  find  another  stepping- 
stone  in  the  evolution  of  this  subject  in  comparative  setting  or 
caaming  tables  included  in  Murphy's  classical  Art  of  Weaning^ 
published  about  the  beginning  of  last  century.  It  is,  hotvever,  not 
too  much  to  say  that  "  rule  of  thumb  "  held  practically  undisputed 
sway  in  this  field  until  thirty  years  ago. 

About  1875  the  late  Mr  Robert  Johnstone,  of  Gralashiels,  a 
shrewd  Scotch  designer,  possessed  of  remarkable  powers  of  obser- 
vation, put  out  a  little  work  entitled  Designer's  Handbook^  in 
which  he  gave  a  rule  to  set  webs  in  the  reed.  After  stating  the 
rule,  he  appends  the  following  note : — "  I  have  often  been  asked 
why  the  square  root  of  the  size  weight  of  a  yam  multiplied  by  the 
numbers  stated  in  this  rule  gives  the  number  of  the  reed  which 
should  be  used.  I  answer  the  question  in  this  way  :  \  of  an  inch 
divided  by  the  square  root  of  any  weight  of  yam  is  equal  to  the 
diameter  of  it.  Now  if  that  is  so,  the  diameter  of  1  cut  yarn  will 
be  ^  of  an  inch,  and  that  of  25  cut  will  be  ^  of  an  inch."  The 
yarns  were  numbered  on  the  Gralashiels  system.  The  above  state- 
ment, though  rather  loosely  worded,  is  the  first  instance,  so  far  as 
the  present  writer  is  aware,  in  which  the  diameter  of  a  yam  was 
employed  in  its  proper  sense  as  a  basis  on  which  the  "  set "  for 
a  given  yam  might  b^  determined.  The  conclusions  arrived  at  are 
all  the  more  remarkable  since  Mr  Johnstone  must  have  deduced 
them  by  observation  on  cloths  alone,  as  he  had  no  means  of 
making  micro-measurements.  Besides,  neither  he  nor  his  fellow- 
workmen  could  have  been  burdened  with  much  education,  nor  had 
he  the  advantage  of  consulting  literature  on  the  subject,  since  there 
was  none.  Johnstone's  rule  is  held  in  high  repute  amongst  Scotch 
designers,  and  it  is  safe  to  say  that  it  gives  very  good  results  for 
the  average  Scotch  woollen  cloths,  for  which  the  rule  was  intended. 

The  great  epoch  in  this  subject,  however,  occurred  in  1880,  when 
the  late  Mr  Thos.  B.  Ashenhurst,  then  head  of  the  textile  de- 
partment of  Bradford  Teclmical  College,  gave  out  the  results  of 
his  experiments  and  deductions  to  the  textile  public.  Mr 
Ashenhurst's  experiments  consisted  of  measuring  the  diameters  of 


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1904-5.]  Mr  T.  Oliver  an  Diameters  of  Twisted  Threads.     483 

a  large  number  of  threads  in  different  sizes  and  materials  with  a 
micrometer,  and  taking  the  average  for  each  yam  number.  These 
numbers  are  tabulated  in  his  work  on  Textile  Calculations, 
published  in  1884. 

Subsequently  he  found  that  the  following  empirical  formula 
gave  results  closely  approaching  to  the  number  tabulated  from 
his  experiments.  The  diameter,  expressed  as  a  fraction  of  an 
inch,  is  equal  to  the  reciprocal  of  the  square  root  of  the  number  of 
yards  per  lb.,  with  a  deduction  of  10  per  cent,  from  the  square 
root  for  worsted,  cotton,  linen,  and  silk  yams,  while  for  woollen 
yams  a  deduction  of  16  per  cent,  should  be  made.  This  deduction 
is  sometimes  spoken  of  as  the  allowance  for  surface  fibre,  which 
is,  however,  quite  erroneous,  as  the  surface  fibre  is  far  too  variable 
a  quantity  to  be  reckoned  as  proportional  to  the  diameter  or  any 
•ther  attribute  of  the  thread.  It  has  really  no  physical  meaning 
whatever.  The  reason  that  there  should  be  a  deduction  is  purely 
a  mathematical  one,  i.e.  to  make  one  number  correspond  with 
another.  Ashenhurst  was  helped  towards  the  explanation  of  his 
diameter  rule  by  Mr  T.  F.  Bell,  of  Belfast,  in  1889.  The  full 
correspondence  on  this  matter  will  be  found  in  the  Textile 
Educator,  February  1889,  of  which  Mr  Ashenhurst  was  the 
editor.  There  is  little  doubt  that  it  is  a  very  useful  formula, 
and  gives  very  good  results  when  applied,  in  conjunction  with  his 
other  setting  formulsB  dealing  with  variations  in  weave  (a  subject, 
however,  outside  the  scope  of  this  paper),  to  the  average  mn  of 
cloths  made  in  Yorkshire,  where  the  practice  is  to  set  cloths 
much  closer  than  is  customary  in  the  Scotch  trade.  There  has 
been  very  little  done  in  this  field  of  research  since  the  time  of 
Mr  Ashenhurst's  experiments.  The  statements  enunciated  by  him 
have  been  repeated  by  lecturers,  and  have  figured  in  text-books 
and  examination  papers  for  over  twenty  years,  until  textile 
students  are  beginning  to  consider  these  statements  as  absolute 
as  the  inverse  square  law  of  gravitation,  while  practical  men 
rock  over  to  the  other  extreme,  treating  the  whole  matter  as 
theoretical  humbug,  and  people  generally  do  not  trouble  to  in- 
vestigate the  subject  further.  This  course  is  clearly  not  in 
accordance  with  the  scientific  spirit  of  inquiry  permeating  other 
branches  of  industry  at  the  present  time.     While  all  honour  is 


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484  Proceedings  ofltoyal  Society  of  Edinburgh,  [sess. 

due  to  the  memory  of  Mr  Ashenhurst  in  connection  with  his 
pioneer  labour  in  this  field  of  research,  to  recognise  that  it  was 
only  a  forward  step  in  the  evolution  of  a  difficult  subject  in  no 
way  detracts  from  that  honour.  Textile  students  would  do  well 
to  consider  the  foundation  on  which  Ashenhurst's  assumptions 
rest,  and  to  investigate  the  limitations  to  which  they  are  subject, 
as  set  forth  in  his  own  words  in  the  second  section  of  his  TextUe 
GcUculcUions ;  so  that  by  the  aid  of  experiment  and  reasoning 
the  next  twenty  years  may  be  more  fruitful  in  results  than  the 
same  period  which  has  just  passed. 

As  the  author's  experiments  on  the  absolute  diameters  of  threads 
do  not  admit  of  generalisation  at  the  present  stage,  we  shall  pass 
on  to  consider  what  is  the  main  subject  of  this  paper,  viz.,  the 
diameter  of  a  twisted  thread  compared  with  the  diameter  of  its 
component  singles.  The  subject  is  admittedly  a  difficult  one 
both  on  the  analytical  and  experimental  sides,  which  may 
doubtless  have  deterred  textile  writers  from  discussing  it.  But 
it  is,  nevertheless,  a  logical  consequence  of  Ashenhurst's  teaching. 

Single  threads  for  purposes  of  calculation  may  be  assumed  to 
be  flexible  cylinders  if  not  subjected  to  lateral  stress,  since  to  this 
form  single  threads  approximate  according  as  they  approach  per- 
fection in  structure.  Writers  on  textile  calculation  have  always 
tacitly  reckoned  twisted  threads  to  have  the  same  form  also,  in 
order  to  avoid  the  mathematical  difficulties  which  more  complex 
forms  must  introduce.  If  the  thread  is  twofold,  i.c.  consists  of 
two  threads  twisted  together,  then  its  diameter  is  considered  to 
be  the  same  as  the  diameter  of  a  single  thread  of  twice  the  weight 
and  volume  per  unit  length,  or  twice  the  sectional  area.  A  little 
consideration,  however,  will  show  that  this  is  an  erroneous  idea, 
and  sufficient  in  many  cases  to  vitiate  the  results  arrived  at.  It 
is  very  evident  from  fig.  1  that  a  twofold  twist  consists  of  two 
spirab  interlocking  each  other,  a  form  differing  very  markedly 
from  that  of  the  cylindrical  single  thread. 

The  dimension  of  a  thread  which  is  of  practical  importance  in 
the  theory  of  cloth-setting  is  its  horizontal  projection,  since  in  all 
ordinary  cases  cloth  is  constructed  by  the  interlacing  of  two  series 
of  threads  which  cross  each  other  at  right  angles.  The  series 
which  is  stretched  lengthways  in  the  loom  is  called  the  "warp," 


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1904-5.]   Mr  T.  Oliver  on  Diameters  of  Tvnsted  Threads,     485 

while  the  other  series,  which  interlaces  the  warp  transversely 
according  to  some  definite  scheme  or  weave,  is  called  the  '^  weft." 
Therefore  the  number  of  threads  which  can  be  crowded  into  a 
given  distance  in  a  horizontal  plane,  i.e.  into  cloth,  must  be 
dependent  upon  the  horizontal  dimensions  of  the  threads.  If  a 
single   thread   is  stretched   horizontally,   it   is   evident  that    its 


^  c     3 
Fig.  1.— Horizontal  Plan  of  Thread. 


horizontal  projection  is  a  rectangle  if  perfectly  even  spun,  but  in 
the  case  of  a  twofold  twist  the  outline  of  the  projection  consists 
of  two  overlapping  curves,  each  of  which  will  be  readily  recog- 
nised as  a  curve  of  sines. 

At  section  A  of  fig.  1  the  maximum  width  =  two  diameters 
of  the  single  thread;  at  section  B,  the  minimum  width  =  one 
diameter  only ;  while  between  A  and  B  the  projection  width 
assumes  every  value  from  two  diameters  to  one  diameter  as  we 
pass  from  A  to  B. 


Fio.  2, — Section  A. 


Fig.  3.— Section  B. 


In  passing  beyond  B  on  to  D  it  is  evident  that  the  same  values 
will  be  reached,  but  in  the  reverse  order,  until  at  D  the  projection 
width  is  again  %1,  where  d  =  the  diameter  of  the  single  thread. 
The  next  part  of  the  problem  is  to  find  the  average  horizontal 
projection,  because  if  we  warp  a  large  number  of  threads  or  weave 
a  large  number  of  picks  (as  the  weft  threads  are  technically 
termed)  side  by  side,  the  probability  is  that  the  broad  parts  of 


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486 


Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh,  [ 


some  of  the  threads  will  come  against  the  narrow  parts  of  others 
in  such  a  way  that  they  will  average  up  and  fill  the  same  space  as 
an  equal  number  of  threads  of  a  hypothetical  yam  uniform 
throughout  its  length  and  with  a  diameter  equal  to  the  mean 
projection  width  of  the  real  yam.  To  find  this  mean  value  we 
may  proceed  in  one  or  other  of  two  ways.  (1)  The  most  ex- 
peditious method  is  to  employ  the  integral  calculus.  We  may 
consider,  for  purposes  of  calculation,  that  the  twist  is  generated  by 
keeping  one  thread  stationary  and  rotating  the  other  about  the 
axis  of  the  first  as  centre.  Proceeding  from  section  A  to  section 
B,  the  angle  of  twist  grows  from  0*  to  90°,  %,e,  through  \  turn  of 
twist. 


Fig.  4.— Section  C. 

If  we  call  the  angle  of  twist  6  and  consider  any  intermediate 
section  C,  the  horizontal  projection  is  AD  or  AB  +  CD  +  BC, 
but  AB  +  CD  =>  e2,  the  diameter  of  the  single  thread, 
andBO  =  rf 
.-.   BC  =  <icos^ 
.-.  AD  =  ci(l+co8^) 
And  the  sum  of  all  the  sections  =  c2  /  (1  +  cos  0)dd  between  the 

limits  ^  =  0  and  6  =  90*  or  ^  radians, 

or  cz|5  (1  +  cos  e)de  =  c/l"^  +  sin  ^1^  =  d(l  + 1) 

Integral    |+1        . 
.  *.  the  mean  width  of  projection  =       ^      = rf  =  M  -|-  ?  \<f 

^  2 

=  1-63W 

A  graphical  method  of  solving  the  problem, — The    following 
graphical  method  will  be  intelligible  to  those  who  are  not  familiar 


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1904-5.]  Mr  T.  Oliver  m  Diameters  of  Twisted  Threads.     487 

with  the  calculus.  Plot  to  a  large  scale  on  squared  paper  the 
values  of  ^  as  ahecissae  and  the  corresponding  values  of  AD  as 
ordinates,  and  draw  a  curve  through  the  tops  of  the  ordinates  in 
the  usual  way.  The  values  of  AD  may  be  found  by  drawing 
figures  for  the  ten  values  of  6,  i.e,  0\  10',  20"  ...  .  90',  and 


4. —    — 

Fio.  5, 


^ynMxk/tu 


measure  off  the  lengths  for  each  case,  or  the  values  of  cos  6  may  be 
taken  from  a  four-figure  table  of  cosines. 

The  area  inclosed  by  the  base  line,  the  curve,  and  the  two  end 
ordinates  may  be  found  by  the  planimeter,  or  any  of  the  rules  for 
summing  areas  in  mensuration.  Of  the  latter,  the  mid-ordinate 
rule,  being  the  simplest  and  sufficiently  accurate,  might  be  used. 


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488  Proceedinffs  of  Itoyal  Society  of  Edinburgh,  [ana. 

The  mean  projection  width  =  the  mean  value  of  the  mid- 
ordinates  of  the  nine  strips  into  which  the  diagram  is  convenientlj 
divided. 

'~(l-996  +  1-966+  1-906+  1-819  +  1-707+  1-574  + 1-423 

+  1-259  +  1-087) 
=  l-637d. 

Now,  if  the  twist  had  been  taken  as  equivalent  to  a  single  thread 
of  twice  the  sectional  area  of  one  of  the  component  singles,  the 
conclusion  would  have  been  arrived  at  that  the  projection  width 
=  J2d  or  l-414t?.  Thus  an  error  of  about  14  per  cent,  would 
have  been  made,  following  the  usual  assumption. 


Fio.  6. 

In  practice,  however,  it  will  be  found  that  the  discrepancy  is  not 
so  great  as  shown  above,  because,  for  the  sake  of  simplicity  in  intro- 
ducing the  subject,  a  hypothetical  case  has  been  considered  which 
would  never  arise  in  practice,  t,e.  an  unstretched  thread.  When 
yarn  is  formed  into  a  warp  it  is  necessary  that  it  should  be  sub- 
jected to  a  relatively  large  longitudinal  stress  in  order  to  secure 
uniformity  in  weaving.  The  result  of  this  is  that  the  spirals  in 
the  twist  tend  to  become  straight,  and  consequently  each  single 
thread  exerts  a  transverse  pressure  on  the  other  along  the  spiral 
line  of  contact :  in  practice,  contact  takes  place  along,  not  a  line, 
but  a  surface,  the  extent  of  which  depends  upon  the  compressi- 
bility of  the  material  of  which  the  thread  is  composed.  A  thread 
also  presents  this  deformation  to  a  lesser  degree,  even  when  not 
subjected  to  longitudinal  stress.     Because,  in  the  process  of  form- 


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1904-6.]   Mr  T.  Oliver  on  Diameters  of  Twisted  Threads.     489 

ing  the  twist  on  the  throstle  frame,  the  threads  are  under 
considerable  tension,  which  strains  the  cylindrical  singles.  When 
the  stress  is  relieved,  after  the  thread  passes  away  from  the 
throstle,  the  friction  between  the  rough  surfaces  of  the  singles 
prevent  to  some  extent  the  natural  elasticity  of  the  material  from 
bringing  the  thread  back  to  its  original  form.  The  single  threads 
no  longer  present  a  circular  cross  section,  but  elliptical,  with  the 
minor  axes  of  the  ellipses  everywhere  at  right  angles  to  the  line 
or  surface  of  contact.  The  mean  projection  width  is  now  more 
difficult  to  find,  since  the  integral  is  of  a  higher  order.  Section 
C  is  now  as  shown  in  fig.  6. 

Let  BE  =  a,  BF  =  &,  BA  =  r. 

The  polar  equation  to  the  ellipse  when  0  is  the  angle  GEO  or 
angle  of  twist  is 

1     sins^^cos^^ 


r  = 


a2           62 
ab 


V. 


cos^^  +  ^sin^^ 


V'-(.-3 


siD^e^ 


,_  where  e^  =  i  _ 

N/l-e2sin2^  a2 

b 


Therefore  AB  or  CD        =     , 

Jl  -  e2  8in2  0 

and  BC  =  BO  cos  tf  =  2  fe  cos  ^ 

But  the  projection  width  =  AD  =  AB  +  CD  +  BC 

=  2r+26cos  6 


\  Jl  -e^  8m2  0  / 


n/1 
Then  the  sum  of  all  the  sections  between  the  limits  ^  =  0  and 

e=  90'  or  %  radians  =  26  [^  /  +  cos  ^V^ 


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490  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  JBdiriburgh.  [ 

The  first  integral  is  evidently  a  complete  elliptic  function  of  the 
first  order,  and  therefore  not  expressible  in  terms  of  elementary 
transcendents.  For  convenience  this  function  will  be  referred  to, 
as  is  usual,  by  F^  and  its  value  taken  from  tables  or  determined 
by  quadrature  for  any  value  of  e  (or  e^  preferably). 

.'.  the  sum  of  all  the  sections    =  26(Fj  +  1) 

and  the  mean  projection  width  =         ^r  = — (F^H-l) 

2 
Instead  of  using  tables  of  elliptic  functions,  it  is  instructive  to 
use  approximate  methods  of  solution. 

(1)  Expanding    the    radical  -— -,  -^-^    by    the    Binomial 

Theorem,  the  series  1  +  Je^  sin*  ^  +  f  c*  sin*  0+  ....  is  obtained 
which  is  uniformly  convergent  from  ^  =  0  to  0  =  ^  radians,  since 
e^<l.     Integrating  this  series  term  by  term  and  using  the  formula 

f^sin'^  0  ^^^(n-l)(n-3) 1^ 

'  0  7»  (n  -  2)  .  .  .  .  2  2 

the  value  of  the  function  is  obtained  as 

Vl-e-^sin*^" 

which  can  be  easily  evaluated  for  all  values  of  e*  and  to  any 
degree  of  approximation  by  taking  sufficient  terms  of  the  series. 
From  the  nature  of  the  problem,  it  is,  however,  not  only  unneces- 
sary but  misleading  to  use  more  than  three  or  four  significant 
figures. 

(2)  The  graphical  solution, — Calculate  the  value  of  the  expres- 
sion 2h(    ,--==-+ cos  ^)  for  10  values  of  $,  viz.,  0*,  10", 

xvl-e^sm^^  / 

20**  ...  .  90*,  keeping  e^  constant,  say  '1.  Plot  these  values  as 
ordinates  and  $  as  abscissae.  Draw  a  curve  through  the  plotted 
points.  The  mean  height  of  the  diagram  gives,  as  before,  the 
mean  projection  width  for  e'^—'l.  Plot  out  the  results  on  the 
same  sheet  for  e^  _  -2,  -3  .  .  .  .  and  the  different  curves  on  the 
same  diagram  will  render  evident  to  the  eye  at  a  glance  how  the 


/! 


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1904-5.]   Mr  T.  Oliver  on  Diameters  of  Ttoisted  Threads.     491 

projection  width  varies  with  the  square  of  the  eccentricity  of  the 
elliptical  section. 

These  curves  are  shown  in  fig.  7. 

The  comparison  of  these  results  with  that  obtained  by  con- 
sidering the  thread  in  its  unstrained  condition  is  beset  with 
difficulties.     The  volume  of  the  thread  must  necessarily  be  less 


Fio.  7. 

in  the  strained  than  in  the  unstrained  condition,  because  (1)  the 
yarn  will  stretch  and  thus  decrease  its  sectional  area;  (2)  each 
single  thread  is  subjected  to  lateral  compression.  The  latter  cause, 
however,  will  not  greatly  affect  the  volume  unless  the  twist  is 
hard,  as  the  fibres  are  free  to  a  considerable  extent  to  move 
away  from  the  surface  of  compression.  The  amount  of  this  com- 
pression cannot  be  arrived  at  by  a  priori  reasoning,  but  must  be 


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492  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh.         [sbss. 

the  subject  of  experiment.  The  results  of  the  author's  experi- 
ments give  reasonable  ground  for  the  belief  that  the  law  of 
compression  is  such  that  a  +  6  =  (f  to  a  first  approximation  if  e^ 
is  not  >  '6,  where  a  and  h  are  the  semi-major  and  semi-minor  axes 
respectively  of  the  elliptical  section,  and  d  the  original  diameter 
of  the  unstrained  single  thread;  In  any  case  it  is  instructive  to 
work  out  the  results  for  this  hypothetical  case.  This  is  practi- 
cally equivalent  to  reckoning  the  perimeter  constant  if  e  is  not 
large. 

Proof, — The  perimeter  of  an  ellipse  =  4a/*  ^(i  -e'sin^B)dO 

which  is  a  complete  elliptic  function  of  the  second  order,  values 
of  which  may  be  obtained  from  tables  for  values  of  e  and  6>  But 
as  the  compressibility  of  the  material  is  not  known  exactly,  it  is 
unnecessary  to  work  with  exact  values. 

Vl-c2  8in2^=l-Je2  gin2  0-.^  gin*  ^   ....  (by   Binomial 
Theorem). 
Integrating  term  by  term  between  the  limits  ^  =  0  -I-  ^  =  !^  radians. 

The  perimeter  =  2  ira  (1  -  \e^  -  ^^  .  .  .  .) 

Neglecting  all  powers  of  e  of  the  fourth  and  higher  degree 


=  Tra  +  Tra  I 

=  7r(a  +  6)  •.•  b^^ajl^^ 

/>2 


=  a  n  -  ^  j  approx.  when   e 


is  small,  and  if  a  +  b  =  d 

then  TT  (a-|-^)  =  7r(/  a  constant,  viz.,  the  original  circumference  of 

the  single  thread. 

Substituting  for  a  in  a -\-b  =  d 


o  =  .; ,-  —  -   a  .    a  =  -  —r 

.*.  mean  projection  width  of  strained  thread  =  -(F|  +  1)6 


=  *(^^+i)r^^'^ 


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1904-6.]   Mr  T.  Oliver  on  Diameters  of  Twisted  Threads,      493 


F,+l 

Mean  projection  width 
BectiomJ  area  of  thd. 


Tables  of  Functions. 

•1  -i  -3  -4 


1671 

1^612 

1-660 

1-713 

1-777 

1^64 

1^960 

2-076 

2-267 

2571 

2-612 

2660 

2713 

2777 

2-864 

2^950 

3-076 

3267 

8-274 

S-826 

3-388 

3465 

3-637 

3-634 

3-767 

3-917 

4148 

1- 

-9 

-8 

•7 

•6 

•6 

•4 

-8 

•2 

1- 

•9487 

•8944 

•8367 

7746 

•7071 

•6826 

•6477 

•4472 

2- 

1-9487 

1-8944 

18367 

1^7746 

17071 

1-6826 

1-5477 

1-4472 

•6 

•4867 

•4722 

'4665 

•4364 

•4142 

•3876 

•8638 

•3001 

lM7d 

l-619d 

l-600d 

l-674d 

1646d 

1605d 

l-466d 

1887d 

l-282d 

4- 

S-799 

3-687 

3-875 

3-150 

2^914 

2-662 

2-397 

2-094 

•2600 

•2498 

•2493 

•2479 

•2469 

•2427 

•2376 

•2285 

•2186 

•2500 

•2498 

•2493 

•2479 

•2469 

•2427 

•2376 

2286 

•2186 

The  sectional  area  of  thread  =  vab  = 


1-62 


^.d^      ^'-_± 


jY^^     (1  +  vr^> 


Table  showing  the  variation  in  the  width  of  projection  from 
e^  =  0  to  a^  =  '6  through  \  turn  of  twist  (when  a+h^d). 


Values  of  ^2 

Valufifi  of  0 

0 

•1 

•2 

•3 

•4 

•5 

'«      1 

0-* 

2-OOOci 

l-947rf 

l-889<i 

l-822(i 

l-746(i 

Vmd 

Vhhdd 

10'' 

l-985rf 

l-984rf 

1-877(3? 

l-816rf 

i-nu 

l-652(« 

Vb^hd 

20' 

l-940rf 

l-894d 

I'^AU 

vmd 

in^d 

l-633ti 

1-532(3? 

SO** 

l-866d 

l-830rf 

l-786(i 

vmd 

l-676(i 

1-604(3? 

1-512(3? 

40'' 

1 -766(3? 

l-740rf 

V1\0d 

1 -671(3? 

\mid 

1-565(3? 

1-486(2 

50" 

l-643rf 

1629(i 

reisc? 

1-590(3? 

l-659(i 

Vb\M 

l-460d 

60'' 

l-500rf 

1*499(£ 

l-497(i 

l-490(i 

1-480(3? 

l-468rf 

1-432(3? 

70** 

r842d 

1-851(3? 

l-862rf 

I'ZIU 

l-384(i 

1-398(3? 

1 -395(2 

80'* 

1 -174(3? 

l-194rf 

1-217(3? 

1-241(3? 

l-268(i 

1  •299(i 

1-338(2 

90'' 

1  -OOOc? 

l-026ci 

l-055(i 

l-091(i 

\\21d 

ll72rf 
l-505(i 

1-225(2 
1-456(2 

Mean  Valaes 

l-637(i 

\'^\U 

l-600(^ 
1-79 

\-f>l\d 
1-67 

1  -546(^ 
1-55 

Maximum  Value 

2-00 

1-90 

1-41 

1-26 

Minimum  Value 

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494  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh.         [: 

The  experimental  work  of  this  subject  has  been  greatly  facilitated 
by  accessories  invented  and  added  to  the  microscope  by  Mr  George 
R.   Smith,  of  Bradford,  about  three   years  ago.     The   complete 


Ha 
u 

« 


Fig.  8. 

Carve  A  shows  the  mftximum  values  of  the  pFojectlon  width  as  ^  changes. 
„     B         „         minimum  „  „  „ 

I,     C         ,,         mean  „  „  „ 

,,      D        ,,         ratio  of  the  maximum  to  the  minimum. 


apparatus  is  shown  in  fig.  9.  A  frame  is  fixed  in  grooves  under 
the  stage  of  the  microscope,  and  it  can  be  moved  to  and  fro  by 
a  rack  and  pinion.  One  end  of  the  frame  carries  a  bell  crank  lever 
neatly  pivoted,  the  upright  arm  of  which  carries  a  jaw  for  securing 


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1904-6.]    Mr  T.  Oliver  on  Diametei^s  of  Twisted  Threads,     495 

one  end  of  the  thread,  while  the  other  consists  of  a  notched  lever 
on  which  a  weight  can  be  moved  along  to  produce  the  required 
tension.  The  other  end  of  the  frame  carries  a  sliding  jaw,  which 
can  also  be  rotated  by  a  handle,  and  the  rotations  indicated  by 
a  counter.  Any  length  of  thread  from  half  an  inch  to  four  inches 
can  be  operated  on,  the  sliding  jaw  being  drawn  back  to  any  of 
the  numbers  on  the  base  under  the  stage.     The  number  of  turns 


Fio.  9. 

of  twist  is  indicated  by  the  counter  when  all  the  twist  is  taken 
out  by  turning  the  sliding  jaw.  The  twist  can  also  be  varied  at 
will  by  the  same  arrangement.  The  diameter  of  the  thread  is 
measured  by  means  of  an  eye-piece  micrometer,  which  is  much 
better  for  this  purpose  than  a  stage  micrometer,  as  with  the  latter 
it  is  impossible  to  bring  the  image  of  the  widest  part  of  the 
thread  to  coincide  with  the  image  of  the  scale  if  the  thread  is 
moderately  thick.     Another  advantage  of  this  instrument  is  that 


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496  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edvnhurgh.         [sbbb. 

the  whole  length  of  thread  may  be  moved  across  the  field  of  view 
of  the  microscope  by  the  rack  and  pinion  underneath  the  stage. 

The  following  tables  show  the  results  of  micro-measurements 
on  three  representative  yams  selected  from  a  large  collection,  the 
general  tendency  of  which  is  to  confirm  the  theory  discussed  in 
this  paper.  The  numbers  are  in  micrometer  divisions,  each  of 
which  =  -00618  inch.  But  as  the  subject  is  only  relative,  i.e. 
the  comparison  of  a  twist  thread  with  a  single  thread,  it  is 
unnecessary  to  translate  the  readings  into  absolute  measure.  The 
three  yarns  selected  are,  (1)  a  2/368  worsted  with  16  turns  per 
inch,  (2)  a  50-cut  2-ply  woollen  yarn  with  9  turns  per  inch,  (3) 
a  2/ 20s  cotton  with  9  turns  per  inch. 


(1)  2/368  Worsted 


(2)  50-cut  2-ply  Woollen. 

Minimum 

Uaximum 

width  of     , 

width  of 

Projection.    1 

Projection. 

1-98 

2-92 

2  12 

3-02 

2-08 

310 

2-15 

3-25 

2-20 

3 '36 

216 

3-30 

2-10 

3  25 

210 

3-25 

2-15 

3-26 

218 

815 

10)21-16 

10)31-84 

212 

3  18 

average 

average 

(3)  2/208  Cotton. 


Minimum 

width  of 

Projection. 


1-54 
1-88 
2-05 
2-00 
1-96 
1-72 
1-86 
1  82 
1-72 
1-65 


18 


lo)l8" 


1-82 
averaj^ 


Maximnm 

width  of 

Projection. 


2-61 
2-68 
2-68 
2-60 
2-55 
250 
2*55 
2-56 
2-50 
2-60 


10  26  62 


2-6« 
averagp 


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1904-6.]   Mr  T.  Oliver  on  Diameters  of  TvnsUd  Threads.     497 


(I) 

(2) 

(3) 

From 
experiments. 

From 
graphs 

of 
fig.  8. 

From 
experiments. 

From 
graphs 

of 
fig.  8. 

vnd 

I'lid 

From 
experiments. 

From 
graphs 

of 
fig.  8. 

Maarimnm    . 
Minimum 

Maximum 

Minimum 

Avera|^  diameter 
of  single  . 

1  '48  divisions 

l-58rf 
\'2\d 

»18  =  l-60 
2-12 

1-88 

1-88 

1-88  divisions 

1-52 

1*52  divisions 

l-66rf 
1*1 7rf 

The  author  is  indebted  to  the  Camegie  Trust  for  the  Universi- 
ties of  Scotland  for  a  grant  to  meet  the  expenses  of  this  research. 


{Isnied  separately  April  8,  1905.) 


PKOC.  ROY.  SOC.  BDIN. — VOL.  XXV. 


32 


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498  Proceedings  of  Koyal  Society  of  Edinburgh,  [i 


A  Study  of  Three  Vegetarian  Diets.     By  D.  Noel.Paton 
and  J.  C.  Dunlop. 

( From  the  Research  Lahoraiory  of  the  Royal  College  of 
Physicians^  Edinburgh,) 

(MS.  receiyed  February  24th,  1905.     Read  March  6th,  1905.) 

The  recent  publication  of  Prof.  Chittenden's  PhysiologiccU 
Economy  in  Nutrition  tends  to  establish  a  new  standard  of 
dietary  requirements,  if  not  for  the  labouring  classes,  at  least  for 
men,  middle-aged  and  young,  who  are  not  undergoing  continued 
and  sustained  muscular  work. 

He  records  a  prolonged  series  of  observations  upon  himself  and 
on  his  colleagues,  representing  professional  men,  on  soldiers  and 
upon  student  athletes.  In  the  first  class,  health  and  undiminished 
working  capacity  were  sustained  for  7  to  9  months  on  a  diet  con- 
taining only  about  46  grms.  of  proteid  per  diem,  and  yielding  only 
from  1550  to  2530  Calories  of  energy.  In  the  group  of  soldiers, 
44  to  50  grms.  of  proteid  and  from  2500  to  2800  Calories  of 
energy  were  sufficient  to  maintain  their  working  power ;  and  in  the 
case  of  the  students  55  grms.  of  proteid  and  under  3000  Calories 
of  energy  were  found  to  be  sufficient  to  meet  the  dietary  require- 
ments of  men  in  training. 

From  the  fact  that  most  of  the  diets  of  those  able  to  select 
their  food  contain  at  least  100  grms.  of  proteid,  it  has  been, 
perhaps  too  readily,  assumed  that  this  amount  of  proteid  is 
essential  for  the  maintenance  of  health  and  a  good  state  of 
muscular  activity.  Chittenden  has  certainly  shown  that  adult 
men  not  subjected  to  sustained  muscular  exertion  can  maintain 
themselves  in  a  state  of  good  muscular  development  on  less  than 
half  this  amount.  He  does  not,  however,  touch  the  question  of 
whether,  in  growing  children,  pregnant  women,  and  labouring 
men,  it  is  advantageous  or,  indeed,  possible  to  reduce  the  proportion 
of  proteids  in  the  diet  to  anything  like  this  extent. 


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1904-5.]  A  Study  of  Three  Vegetarian  Diets.  499 

It  is  not  our  purpose  here  to  consider  this  aspect  of  the  question, 
but  we  think  that  the  new  light  thrown  upon  dietetics  by 
Chittenden's  book  makes  the  study  of  what  might  be  considered 
atypical  diets  of  considerable  interest. 

In  the  diets  recorded  by  him,  vegetables,  as  might  be  expected, 
figure  very  largely,  and  while  in  all  of  them  the  amount  of 
animal  food  is  lower  than  is  usual,  in  some  of  the  diets  vegetables 
almost  entirely  replace  animal  products. 

As  a  result  of  the  publication  of  our  Dietary  Studies  of  the 
Labouring  Classes  in  Edinburgh  in  1898,  the  opportunity  has 
been  presented  to  us  of  studying  three  very  atypical  vegetarian 
diets,  which  had  been  selected  by  their  consumers  for  what 
appeared  to  them  reasons  of  health  and  economy,  and  they  seem 
to  us  to  present  features  of  sufficient  interest  to  warrant  their 
publication. 

The  first  illustrates  the  danger  of  a  refusal  to  accept  the  very 
evident  fact  that  the  food  must  supply  the  necessary  energy  for 
work ;  the  second  records  what,  in  the  light  of  Chittenden's  work, 
might  be  considered  a  very  liberal  diet,  but  illustrates  one  of  the 
difficulties  of  vegetarianism ;  while  the  third  reveals  the  diet  of 
a  vegetarian  glutton,  and  shows  how  the  res  angusta  domi  have 
produced  a  reformation. 

Study  L 

The  subject  of  this  study  was  a  retired  professional  man.  His 
theory  is  that  most  men  overeat  themselves,  and  that  the  less 
a  man  eats  the  better  and  the  stronger  he  is.  His  physical 
condition  does  not  support  his  theory.  He  is  in  a  state  of  emacia- 
tion, and  his  appearance  is  more  that  of  a  man  suffering  from 
some  wasting  disease  than  that  of  a  man  in  robust  health.  His 
height  is  5  feet  \0\  inches;  his  weight  at  the  commencement  of 
the  week's  observation  was  only  52  kilos. — about  40  per  cent,  less 
than  the  normal  for  his  height. 

The  food  which  he  selected  for  himself  during  the  period  of 
observation,  as  suitable  for  the  maintenance  of  health,  was  banana 
and  hot  water.  The  quantity  of  banana  he  consumed  during  the 
five  days  was  9|  lbs.;  on  four  of  the  observation  days  he  ate  one 
pound  of  the  bananas  at  about  8.30  a.m.,  and  a  second  pound  at 


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500  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh.  [i 


about  3  p.m.,  taking  a  little  hot  water  twice  or  thrice  in  the  24 
hours.  During  the  observation  period  he  reported  that  he  was 
feeling  well  and  satisfied,  but  on  the  last  day  allowed  that  he  had 
not  slept  well,  that  he  was  feeling  hungry,  and  that  he  would 
appreciate  a  change  to  a  diet  containing  some  bread  and  butter. 
After  five  days  of  the  banana  diet  his  weight  was  50  kilos. — a 
loss  of  2  kilos. 

The  food- value  of  his  diet  amounted  for  the  five  days  to: 
proteid,  37*5  grammes ;  fat,  3*5  grammes;  and  carbohydrates,  999 
grammes,  the  equivalent  per  man  per  day  being  : — 

Proteids  .7*5  grms. 

Fats     ....  0-7     „ 

Carbohydrates  ....     199-8     „ 
Calories  .  .  .856 

His  excretions  were  carefully  analysed  during  the  period,  and 
the  results  of  the  analyses  are  shown  in  the  following  table : — 


Urini. 


Quantity,  c.c 

Specific  gravity 
Reaction,  on  each  day  alkaline 
Total  nitrogen,  grammes 
Urea  nitrogen,  grammes 
Ammonia  nitrogen,  grammes 
Uric  acid,  grammes 
Non-urea  nitrogen,  grammes . 
Phosphoric  acid,  grammes 


Dry  weight,  grammes 
ToUl  nitrogen,  grammes 


Intake. 


Food 


1st 

2nd 

8rd 

Day. 

Day. 

Day. 

1040 

960 

500 

1014 

1014 

1020 

3-92 

4-26 

2^96 

330 

3-68 

2-26 

•112 

•095 

•061 

•308 

•804 

•345 

•62 

•67 

•70 

•88 

•88 

•80 

4th 
Day. 

5th 
Day. 

Average. 

460 

860 

762 

1022 

1012 

285 

2^€8 

323 

2-35 

2-68 

2-88» 

•084 

-095 

•09 

833 

•828 

■82t 

•78 

•76 

70 

1-00 

•84 

•88 

I 

I     Per 

cent,  of  I 
Total  N.l 


I 


25 
80 

20 


F.fi01CS. 


I  28-2 
I      -81 


29-2 
102 


29        1 29-5 
156       112 


30-5 
1-21 


22-5 
114 


NiTRooBM  Balance. 


1-21 


Output. 


Urine 
F»ces 


328 
1*14 


4-87 


Food  Analtsis. 
Bananas,  Proteid,  0*87 ;  Fat,  0*06;  Carhohydrate,  28*17  per  eent 


*  Average  urea,  6  2. 


t  Or  0-106  grm.  N. 


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1904-6.]  A  Stiidy  of  Three  Vegetarian  Diets.  501 

The  more  uoteworthy  points  about  this  study  were : — 

1.  The  extreme  smaUness  of  the  diet  The  caloric  value  of  it 
was  only  about  one-fourth  of  the  normal  diet  for  moderate  labour, 
and  the  proteid  value  was  only  about  one-twentieth  of  the  normal. 

2.  The  urine  was  alkaline  throughout  the  entire  period.  It 
was  more  strongly  so  on  the  third,  fourth,  and  fifth  days  than  on 
the  first  two  days.  This  alkalinity  was  due  to  the  food  being 
purely  vegetable. 

3.  The  excretion  of  nitrogen  was  very  similar  to  that  found  in 
total  starvation.  Of  the  total  nitrogen,  only  80  per  cent,  was 
excreted  as  urea,  a  proportion  less  than  the  normal.  The  total 
amount  of  non-urea  nitrogen  was  less  than  the  normal,  but  was 
relatively  not  so  much  reduced  as  was  the  excretion  of  nitrogen 
in  urea. 

4.  The  excretion  of  preformed  ammonia  was  very  small.  This 
may  be  ascribed  to  the  presence  of  excess  of  alkali  and  to  the 
comparative  absence  of  organic  sulphur  in  the  food. 

5.  The  nitrogen  balance  was  decidedly  negative,  and  indicated 
a  daily  average  loss  of  19*8  grms.  of  tissue  proteid,  or  about  100 
grms.  of  flesh. 

Study  IL 

The  subject  was  a  woman  aged  forty-two,  a  typist,  who  had  for 
a  long  time  been  a  modified  vegetarian.  The  study  was  made  at 
the  same  time  and  in  the  same  way  as  our  studies  of  the  diets  of 
the  labouring  classes  of  Edinburgh.  She  stated  that  she  was 
strong  and  well,  and  able  for  a  large  amount  of  exercise,  that  she 
habitually  bicycled  and  walked  long  distances.  She  always  sat 
with  the  window  of  her  room  open,  and  did  not  feel  cold.  The 
study  extended  over  a  period  of  one  week. 

The  food  she  used  during  the  period  was  as  follows : — Butter, 
20  oz. ;  milk,  60  oz. ;  eggs,  8 ;  cream,  10  oz. ;  cheese,  3  oz. ; 
bread,  32  oz. ;  brown  bread,  22  oz. ;  cakes  and  pastry,  50  oz. ; 
chocolate  cream,  2  oz. ;  sugar,  13  oz. ;  jam  11  oz. ;  potatoes,  46 
oz. ;  fresh  vegetables,  24  oz. ;  prunes,  16  oz. ;  bananas,  21  oz. ; 
oranges,  29  oz. ;  and  apples,  8  oz. 

The  food  principles  in  such  a  diet  are  estimated  by  us  to 
amount    per    week    to:    proteid,    406*5    grammes;    fat,    896*1 


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502  Proceedings  of  Roycd  Society  of  Edinburgh.  [se 


grammes;   carbohydrates, 

2923 

grammes. 

The  equivalent  ( 

per  man  per  day  is: — 

Proteids 

. 

73*6  grms. 

Fats     . 

.     160-0     „ 

Carbohydrates  . 

. 

.     5220     „ 

Calories 

.  3926 

Here  a  fair  energy  value  is  yielded  by  a  large  supply  of 
fats  and  carbohydrates,  while  the  proportion  of  proteids  is  un- 
usually low. 

The  point  of  special  interest  in  this  diet  is  the  very  large 
amount  of  fat  and  carbohydrate  food  taken  to  get  the  necessary 
energy,  an  amount  which  many  persons  would  find  it  difficult  to 
digest. 

The  cost  of  the  week's  diet  was  12s.  4d.,  or  equivalent  to 
14s.  lOd.  per  man  per  week,  or  25  J  pence  per  day.  The  ordinary 
labourer's  family  in  Edinburgh  gets  a  larger  supply  of  proteid 
and  a  fair  supply  of  energy  for  about  7d.  per  day. 

Study  II L 

Along  with  a  cutting  concerning  our  Dietary  Studies  from  the 
South-Eastern  Advertiser  of  24th  February  1900,  we  received  a 
letter  from  a  Mr  H.,  of  which  the  following  is  an  extract : — 

\Uh  October  1900. 
Dear  Sir, — After  reading  the  above,  it  occurred  to  me  that  I 
might  as  well  send  you  a  copy  of  my  half-year's  expenditure. 
....  I  cannot  possibly  be  called  a  typical  person  ;  but  there 
are  so  few  people  who  do  keep  exact  records  of  what  they  eat, 
drink,  and  spend,  that  I  suppose  scientific  men  are  glad  to  get 
such  records  from  almost  anybody." 

With  this  letter  was  a  very  full  and  detailed  budget  of  C.  H.'s 
income  and  expenditure,  and  a  detailed  statement  of  the  food 
consumed  during  the  six  months  from  Ist  April  to  30th  September 
1900.  It  is  unnecessary  to  publish  this  at  length.  The  following 
list  contains  the  articles  of  importance,  and  the  quantity  of  each 
used,  the  quantities  being  expressed  in  kilogrammes : — Apples,  1 5-88  : 
cherries,  0*45  ;  bilberries,  045 ;  strawberries,  0*45 ;  melons,  8'00  ; 
red  currants,  I'OO;  gooseberries,  2*50;   oranges,  20*00;  lemons, 


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1904-5.]  A  Study  of  Three  Vegetarian  Diets.  503 

4-00;  tomatoes,  3'37  ;  monkey  nuts,  94  00;  hovis  bread,  84-00; 
other  breads,  1000;  nucoline,  9'50 ;  quaker  oats,  20*00;  sugar, 
4100;  nut  butter,  1*00;  jam,  15*00;  golden  syrup,  0*90; 
cocoa,  0*50;  coffee,  0*15;  peas,  1000;  lentils,  4*70;  onions, 
3-20;  carrots,  0-20;  radishes,  4*00;  rhubarb,  4*00;  biscuits, 
3'00;  chocolate,  110;  peppermints,  010;  eggs,  0*30;  condensed 
milk,  1*50;  lemon  squash,  TOO;  nutta,  0*50;  plasmon,  0*20; 
yeast,  0*07  ;  bananas  (dried),  0*40. 

The  food-value  of  such  a  diet  has  been  estimated  by  us,  and 
it  is  found  that  its  value  is  per  man  per  diem  : — 

Proteids  2303  grms. 

Fats       ....         275-3    „ 
Carbohydrates    .  7342    „ 

Calories  .  .6514 

Of  the  total  energy,  8 '5  per  cent,  is  derived  from  animal  food, 
and  91*5  from  vegetable  food.  The  cost  of  the  diet  for  the  six 
months  was  £8,  18s.  lid.,  which  is  equal  to  Gs.  lOd.  per  man 
per  week,  or  11 -7^  per  day. 

Even  supposing  that  this  diet  is  over-estimated  by  10  per  cent., 
it  is  still  Gargantuan,  yielding  over  200  grs.  of  proteid  and  5800 
Calories  of  energy.  From  the  observations  of  Avsititkiski,  of 
Dunlop  upon  prisoners,  and  of  Noel  Paton  on  dogs,  it  is  almost 
certain  that  a  great  part  of  this  enormous  diet  was  not  digested 
and  absorbed,  and  was  therefore  not  available. 

When  putting  together  our  results,  we  wrote  to  Mr  H.  as  to 
the  enormous  amount  of  food  consumed,  and  he  writes,  under 
date  5th  February  1904  :— 

"I  must  own,  however,  that  I  am  a  larger  eater  than  most, 
indeed,  a  glutton.  Everyone  has  his  own  physical  vice,  and  I 
make  up  for  abstinence  from  alcohol,  tobacco,  tea,  coffee,  meat, 
and  breakfasts,  and  for  devotion  to  the  morning  cold  tub,  by 
overeating  myself  three  or  four  evenings  a  week.  I  always  read 
at  meals,  and  this  tends  to  make  one  go  on  feeding  mechanically." 

With  this  letter  he  sends  details  of  the  diet  of  himself  and 
of  his  wife  and  three  children  from  1st  April  to  30th  September 
1903.  He  says : — "  I  do  not  think  I  eat  quite  so  much 
now  as   in  1900.     I   cannot  say  I  have  ever  suffered  much  in 


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504  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh.         [i 

health  from  overfeeding  (though  I  suppose  all  physical  sins 
must  be  paid  for  in  the  long  run),  but  a  growing  family  and 
growing  debts  exert  on  me  a  highly  beneficial  pressure.  I  enclose 
a  list  of  the  food  I  ate  April-September  '03.  The  table  was 
made  primarily  with  a  view  to  cost,  but  weights  can  be  deduced 
from  it  within  probably  5  per  cent,  of  the  truth.'* 

The  diet  here  recorded  is  a  much  more  normal  one,  and  con- 
sidering the  non-availability  of  the  proteid  in  many  v^etable 
foods,  and  the  fact  that  many  of  the  vegetables  used  contain  a 
large  proportion  of  non-proteid  nitrogen  which  is  here  recorded  as 
proteid,  the  food  consumption  is  by  no  means  above  the  average. 
The  growing  family  and  growing  debts  have  certainly  been  bene- 
ficial so  far  as  his  diet  is  concerned. 

The  food  consumed  during  this  second  six-months  period  was 
of  essentially  the  same  kind  as  during  the  first  period,  but  differed 
from  the  latter  in  quantity.  He  had  reduced  his  six-monthly 
consumption  of  monkey  nuts  from  94  kilogrammes  to  131,  of 
ho  vis  bread  from  84  kilogrammes  to  30;  but  had  increased  his 
supplies  of  other,  more  ordinary,  breads  from  10  to  65.  Another 
notable  change  was  that  he  had  much  increased  his  supply  of 
fresh  vegetables,  using  no  loss  than  22  kilogrammes  of  carrots, 
while  during  the  first  period  he  only  used  0*02  of  that  vegetable. 
Here  is  a  list  of  the  food  used  during  the  second  period, 
expressed  in  kilos: — Monkey  nuts,  13-10;  roasted  peanuts, 
0*90;  apples,  9*80;  oranges,  1*50;  lemons,  2*00;  tomatoes, 
1*40;  melons,  5  00;  red  currants,  I'OO;  cucumbers,  1*50; 
stoned  raisins,  180;  hovis  bread,  30*613;  whole  -  meal 
bread,  44*73;  malt  bread,  16*00;  white  bread,  5*00;  biscuits, 
4-00;  bannocks,  12*00;  cake,  0*30;  quaker  oats,  0*90 
force,  1-80;  sugar,  10*5;  carrots,  22*20;  onions,  3*00 
scallions,  1*20;  turnips,  8*00;  green  peas,  2  00;  rhubarb,  14*00 
radishes,  1*50;  jam,  6*30;  honey,  0*40;  syrup,  9*00;  nucoline, 
6*30 ;  walnut  butter,  0*40 ;  peanut  butter,  0*40 ;  cow  («tc) 
butter,  7*7;  cocoa,  0*2;  coffee,  0*2;  chocolate,  4*0;  sweets, 
0*6;  eggs,  1*40;  Briggs' food,  0*40 ;  orange  wine  ;  plasmon,  0*4; 
Maggi's  soup  powder,  0*1. 

The  total  food  principles  in  these  six  months'  rations,  as  estimated 
by  us,  amount  to:   proteid,   19,054*4   grammes;   fat,   18,981*9; 


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1904-5.]  A  Study  of  Three  Vegetarian  Diets.  505 

Ksarbohydrates,   93, 689 '0 ;   and  from   that  estimate  the  diet  per 
-day  per  man  is  found  to  be : — 


Proteids 
Fats  . 

Carbohydrates 
Calories 


104*1  grms. 
103-7     „ 
512-3     „ 
3497 


The  cost  of  the  diet  for  six  months  was  X7,  12s.  Id. ;  the 
•equivalent  cost  per  man  per  week  was  Ss.  lOd.,  or  lOd.  per  day. 

Considered  in  the  light  of  the  older  standards,  the  diet  is  here 
a  very  liberal  one,  while  in  the  light  of  Chittenden's  observations 
it  may  be  considered  as  still  excessive. 

The  diet  of  this  man's  wife  and  children  for  the  period  of  six 
months  included  the  following,  quantities  being  expressed  as  kilo- 
grammes:—Flour,  126;  butter,  23*1;  236  eggs;  sugar,  271; 
potatoes,  144;  milk,  204;  lentils,  10;  bacon,  9*5;  and  smaller 
quantities  of  bread,  lard,  cheese,  onions,  peas,  turnips,  cabbages, 
carrots,  rhubarb,  radishes,  tea,  coffee,  cocoa,  oranges,  lemons, 
tomatoes,  cucumbers,  apples,  bananas,  plums,  currants,  monkey 
nuts,  quaker  oats,  cake,  biscuits,  jam,  sweets,  peel,  corn-flour, 
nut  butter,  meat,  ham,  sausages,  sardines,  and  tinned  salmon. 
The  food  principles  in  the  six  months'  rations  amount  to :  proteid, 
35,324-6 ;  fat,  34,568  9 ;  carbohydrates,  172,506-0.  Using  Atwater's 
estimate  of  the  proportional  requirements  of  a  man,  and  of  women 
and  children,  we  estimate  that  the  requirements  of  his  wife  and 
family,  three  children,  aged  six,  four,  and  two,  would  amount  to 
2-1  times  that  of  a  man.  On  that  basis  we  estimate  that  the  diet 
submitted  is  equivalent  to  a  diet  per  man  per  diem  : — 

Proteids  .  .65*7  grms. 

Fats         ....         90*2     „ 
Carbohydrates  444-1     „ 

Calories  ....     2929 

The  cost  of  the  diet  was  for  the  six  months  JB12,  19s.  lOd. ;  this 
is  equal  to  a  cost  of  4s.  9d.  per  man  per  week,  or  8* Id.  per  day. 

It  is  a  diet,  largely  vegetarian,  which  meets  the  requirements 
laid  down  by  Chittenden,  but  which  by  an  older  standard  would 
be  considered  deficient  in  proteid  and  in  energy. 


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506  Proceedings  of  Boycd  Society  of  Edinburgh.  [i 

Conclusions. 

On  two  of  the  diets  studied  the  suhject  was  ahle  to  maintain 
health  and  muscular  vigour  because  the  amount  of  proteid  and 
energy  yielded  was  sufficient,  but  in  both  the  cost  was  considerably 
in  excess  of  that  for  which  the  labouring  classes  in  town  or 
country  are  able  to  procure  an  equally  satisfactory  diet.  They  are 
both  essentially  wasteful  diets,  and  are  not  to  be  recommended  for 
general  adoption. 

The  study  of  the  ordinary  diets  of  the  labouring  classes  in  all 
countries  seems  to  show  that  whenever  possible  a  diet  is  secured 
which  will  yield  something  over  3000  Calories  of  energy  and  over 
100  grms.  of  proteids  per  man  per  diem.  It  is  improbable  that  so 
many  different  races  should  have  made  the  same  mistakes  in  the 
essential  elements  of  their  very  varied  diets,  and  we  think  that  the 
evidence  afforded  by  these  diets  cannot  be  set  aside  even  by  so 
careful  a  set  of  experiments  as  those  conducted  by  Chittenden. 


{Issued  separately  April  8,  1905.) 


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1904-5.]  Continuants  whose  Main  Diagonal  is  Univarial.    507 


Continiiants  whose  Main  Dickgoncd  is  Univarial. 
By  Thomas  Muir.  LLD. 

(MS.  receiyed  December  12,  1904.     Read  January  23,  1905.) 

(I)  In  a  recently  written  paper*  dealing  with  a  continuant  first 
considered  by  Cayley,  it  was  pointed  out  that  the  function  in 
question  owed  its  complicated  law  of  development  to  peculiarities 
of  specialisation,  there  being  a  much  more  general  continuant 
governed  by  a  simpler  law.  The  theorem  enunciated  regarding 
the  latter  was : — If  A,  be  written  for  the  sum  of  all  the  r-ary  pro- 
ducts formed  from  \,  bg ,  .  .  .  .  with  tJie  restriction  that  no  two 
conseciUive  b'a  shall  appear  in  any  single  product,  then 


0 
-1 


-  1 


^2 

6 


=  ^  +  Ai^-HA2^-*+  .  . 


For  example,  when  n  =  6  the  expansion  is 

+  b^b^  +  bzbA 

(2)  The  curious  fact  has  now  to  be  noted  that  this  theorem 
itself  can  be  generalised  with  a  minimum  of  change  in  the  mode  of 
expression  by  altering  the  2nd,  4th,  6th,  ....  diagonal-elements 
on  the  left  into  <^  and  writing  0<f>  for  $^  on  the  right,  the  resulting 
theorem  being  then  formulated  as  follows  : — 

0  L  


-1 


i> 


1 


0 

-1 


^8 


=  {$<!>)"'  +  A^{$it>)^- '  +  A^{0<l>)^-'  + 


■.oi^{e<i>r-'-^A,{Oi>r 


(I) 

n 
when  w=2m, 

when  n  =  2m  -  1  . 


*  See  Messenger  of  Math,  ^  xxxiv.  p.  126. 


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508 


Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh,         [ 


That  ^  is  a  factor  in  the  latter  case  is  evident  from  a  consideration 
of  the  fundamental  identity 

which  shows  that  if,  as  is  easily  seen  to  be  the  case,  the  continuant 
of  the  3rd  order  has  0  for  a  factor,  so  also  must  the  continuant  of 
the  5th  order,  and  therefore  also  the  continuant  of  the  7  th  order, 
and  so  on. 


(3)  The  fact  that  the  change  from  a  univarial  to  a  bivarial 
diagonal  necessitates  no  change  in  the  coefficients  on  the  right- 
hand  side  of  the  identity  prepares  one  for  an  analogous  widening 
of  other  theorems  in  which  continuants  with  a  univarial  diagonal 
are  involved.  Thus,  denoting  the  continuant  in  (I)  by  *„  we  have 
the  important  condensation  theorem — 


*^  = 


0<l>  +  b^ 


Oi>  +  b^^b, 


0<t^  +  b^  +  b^ 


(II) 


^«^  +  ^Jm-i+^Im-l 


^r.-v^e\  04>+b,-^b^ 


04>-¥b,^b,        b, 

bi  H-^b^^-b^ 


I  (rr) 


>  +  /'«m-S+^-«l 


Dividing  *„  as  it  appears  in  (II)  by  the  cofactor  of  its  first  element 
we  obtain  a  continued  fraction,  and  dividing  the  equivalent  con- 
tinuant in  (I)  by  the  cofactor  of  Us  first  element  we  obtain  another 
continued  fraction  :  and  as,  when  n  is  even,  the  two  divisors 
differ  only  by  the  factor  ^,  the  two  continued  fractions  differ  to 
the  same  extent.     We  thus  have 


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1904-6.]  Continuants  whose  Main  Diagonal  is  Univarial.     509 

6. 


.  +  6i- 


b,b. 


¥i. 


'+h+^-e4,+b;+b,- 


=i,\e+''j  b,        \ 


*+ 


"^•^^TV^.fc, 


+  V 


1   + 


Consideration  of  the  case  where  n  is  odd  leads  to  the  same  result, 
— a  result  given,  probably  for  the  first  time,  by  Heilermnan.* 

(4)  Similarly  we  have  the  theorem 

^1  

n-l        <l>  2  .  

I        .         71-2        0  3  

w-3       <l>  


(Ill) 


=  (0<l>  -  22)  (Oi>  -  42)  (d<^  -  62) when  n  is  even, 

and       =  0{$<l>  -  12)  {O4,  -  3-)  (^<^  -  52) when  n  is  odd, 

— a  theorem  which  degenerates  into  Sylvester's  {Nouv.  Ann,  de 
Math.y  xiii.  p.  305)  when  ^  is  put  equal  to  0,  It  has  to  be  noted, 
however,  that  the  mode  of  proof  followed  in  the  case  of  Sylvester's 
theorem,  viz.,  removing  the  linear  factors  separately,  is  now  unsuit- 
able. A  mode  of  removing  the  quadratic  factors  will  be  found  in 
the  Proc.  Roy.  Soc,  Edin,,  xxiv.  pp.  105-112. 

(5)  Thirdly,    if    we   denote    the    preceding    generalisation    of 
Sylvester's  continuant  by  <r„  we  obtain 


1 

4>       2 

a?-l     e      3 
.     a:-2  if> 


n{n-\) 
=  <r„ 7) {x  -  n  +  l)<r,._. 


(IV> 


n(n-l)(n-2)(n-3) 
2-4 


{x-n-\r\)(x-n-\-  2)(r„_^ 


n(n-l)...(n-5), 

rjTjTg (ic-n+l)(a;-«+2) 


•  See  Zeitsehriftf,  Math,  u,  Phya.,  v.  (1860),  pp.  862-363  ;  also  Gunther'a 
Darstellung  der  NdherungBwerthe  der  KeUenbriicfietif  p.  75,  Leipzig,  1878. 


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510  Proceedings  of  jRoycU  Society  of  Edinburgh.  [ 


— a  theorem  which  degenerates  into  Cay  ley's  (Quart.  Joum.  of 
Math,,  ii.  pp.  163-166)  when  <f>  is  put  equal  to  $. 

(6)  Fourthly,  all  the  theorems  given  in  the  paper  referred  to  in 
§  3  are  capable  of  the  same  extension  as  Sylvester's.  Only  one  of 
them  need  be  quoted  in  its  generalised  form,  viz. : — If  in  the  con- 
tinuant of  the  n**  order 


Pn- 


h 
* 


(V) 


the  difference  between  the  element  following  any  $  and  the  element 
preceding  the  same  he  constant,  equal  to  \  Sfiy  ;  and  the  correspond- 
ing difference  in  the  rows  containing  ^  be  also  constant,  equal  to  ^^ 
say  ;  then 

is  a  factor  of  the  continuant,  the  cofador  being  the  similar  con- 
tinuant of  the  (n  -  2)**  order  whose  minor  diagonals  are  got  from 
those  of  the  original  by  striking  otit  \ ,  \  from  the  one  and  ^ ,  j8, 
from  the  other. 


(7)  Fifthly,  with  the  notation  of  §  4  we  find 

B    ar-n  +  2 

.r  <f>        x-n  +  S 

X-  1  ar-n  +  4    . 

x-2  <l> 


+  (^2^V(«-n+l)(a;+l).(aj-n  +  2)a:-< 


(VI) 


where  the  putting  of  <f>^0  gives  a  theorem  first  published  in  the 
paper  referred  to  in  §  1. 


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1904-6.]  Continuants  whose  Main  Diagonal  is  Univarial.     511 

(8)  Proofs  of  the  foregoing  six  theorems  have  been  purposely 
omitted,  because  the  modes  of  procedure  followed  in  the  case  of 
the  original  ungeneralised  theorems  are  applicable  without  altera- 
tion to  the  new  theorems.  In  only  one  instance,  that  of  (II),  does 
previous  work  stand  markedly  in  need  of  being  supplemented. 
The  first  part  of  it,  viz.,  where  n  is  even,  is  best  dealt  with  as 
follows : — 


<>ex*'  =  ,^      h 


-1    4>     b. 


-10  63  .  . 
.  -1  <^  64  . 
.      .     -I   0     h 


0<l>  +  b^ 

-1 


-1   4>    ; 

-1        Oif>  +  b^  +  b^ 
-1 


|<^       1  .       .  .  . 

1  .       .  .  . 

.  .         1  .  . 

.  .  -6,  <^  1 

.  .      .  .  1 


^ 
* 


^3 
-1 


-V4 


1  +  64  +  65 


4>  , 


=  ^s 


*«  = 


^<^  +  6i 
-1 


0<l>  +  b^ 


-V2 
^^^  +  62  +  63 

-1 
^45^  +  62  +  68 


-V4 
^  +  64  +  65 


0<l>  +  b^  +  b^ 
Applying  the  same  treatment  to  *  when  of  odd  order  we  obtain 


*7  = 


$<l>  +  b^ 


^  +  63  +  63 


^^^  +  64  +  65 


-^<^, 


$<l>+h. 


— a  result  interesting  in  itself,  although  not  the  form  desired. 
Increasing  each  column  by  the  column  which  immediately  follows 
it,  we  have 


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512  Froeudingi  of  Riryal  Society  of  Edinburgh,         [i 

^7  =  ^  +  61  +  62    ^  +  fti  +  ft,  +  fts  \  K* 

i  b^  ^  +  62  +  «»,  +  ft4        ^  +  2>8  +  ^  +  ^ft  *5  I 

and  now  diminishing  the  second  column  by  the  first,  the  third 
by  the  new  second,  and  so  on,  we  obtain 


►  +  ^1  +  ^2 


^  +  ^8  +  *4 


H  +  h  +  ^6 


.    \^<t>. 


H 


^0 


given  in  §  2. 


» +  ^1  +  ^2  *s 

63  ^  +  63  +  64 


^  +  65  +  5^ 


{Issued  ssparaUly  April  8,  1905.) 


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1904-5.]   On  Prof.  Seeliger's  TTieory  of  Temporary  Stars.      513 


On  Professor  Seeliger's  Theory  of  Temporary  Stars. 
By  J.  Halm,  Ph.D.,  Lecturer  on  Astronomy  in  the  Uni- 
versity of  Edinburgh,  and  Assistant  Astronomer  at  the  Royal 
Observatory. 

(Read  November  7,  1»04.     MS.  received  November  28,  1904.) 

Professor  Becker's  paper  "  On  the  Spectrum  of  Nova  Persei  and 
the  Structure  of  its  Bands,"  recently  published  in  the  Transactions 
of  this  Society,  contains  an  interesting  confirmation  of  some  results 
already  pointed  out  by  Messrs  Campbell  and  Wright  of  the  Lick 
Observatory,*  which  seem  to  be  of  considerable  importance  for  the 
theory  of  temporary  stars.  By  most  careful  micrometric  measure- 
ments of  the  positions  of  the  bright  and  dark  bands  in  the  photo- 
graphic spectrum  of  Nova  Persei,  Professor  Becker  arrives  at  the 
conclusion  that  all  the  bands  are  similar  in  type,  and  that  the 
distances  of  corresponding  maxima  and  minima  from  the  centres 
of  the  bands  are  proportional  to  the  wave-lengths.  The  results 
derived  from  the  Lick  photographs  point  to  exactly  the  same 
conclusion.  It  appears,  therefore,  from  these  two  carefully  and 
independently  executed  series  of  observations,  that  the  chemical 
nature  of  the  elements,  whose  light-vibrations  gave  rise  to  the 
selective  radiations  and  absorptions  noticed  in  Nova  Persei,  had 
no  influence  on  the  appearance  of  the  bands.  .  According  to  the 
Lick  observers,  there  is  no  evidence  that  the  structure  and  char- 
acter of  these  bands  were  affected  by  other  considerations  than  that 
of  wave-length. 

This  important  result  appears  to  necessitate  now  the  exclusion 
from  our  view  of  those  theories  in  which  chemical  or  physical 
properties  of  the  incandescent  gases  and  vapours  figure  as  deter- 
mining factors.  It  seems,  for  instance,  incompatible  with  the  high- 
pressure  theory  advocated  by  Professor  Wilsing  of  Potsdam,  because 
those  effects  of  pressure  on  the  displacements  of  spectral  lines 
which  form  the  basis  of  Wilsing's  theory  are  by  no  means  the 
*  Eighth  Bulletin  of  the  Lick  Observatory. 

PROC.  ROY.  SOC.  EDIN. — VOL.  XXV.  33 


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514  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edivburgh,  [i 

same  for  all  gases  and  vapours.*  The  identical  behaviour  of  lines 
in  the  spectrum  of  Nova  Persei  pertaining  to  different  chemical 
elements  must  be  considered  to  contradict  this  explanation.  For 
the  same  and  also  some  other  reasons  we  cannot  perhaps  accept 
a  new  theory  advanced  by  Dr  Ebert  of  Munich, t  in  which 
abnormal  refraction  is  claimed  as  the  principal  cause  of  the 
peculiar  duplex  character  of  the  Nova  lines.  Dr  Ebert's  con- 
siderations are  based  on  the  fact  that  in  a  medium,  the  spectrum 
of  which  shows  distinct  absorption  maxima,  the  index  of  refrac- 
tion changes  abruptly  in  the  immediate  neighbourhood  of  such  a 
maximum,  being  greater  on  the  less  refrangible,  and  smaller  on 
the  more  refrangible  side.  In  his  opinion,  the  light-radiation 
perceived  in  the  bands  of  the  Nova  is  not  due  to  the  radiative 
energy  of  the  gas  itself,  but  to  light  originally  emanating  from  Uie 
incandescent  surface  of  the  star,  which  is  abnormally  refracted  in 
the  gaseous  envelopes  outside  in  such  a  manner  that  bright  and 
dark  bands  are  formed  lying  on  the  red  and  violet  edges  of 
the  lines  peculiar  to  the  traversed  gases.  Three  objections  may  be 
raised  against  this  theory.  Firstly,  Dr  Ebert's  theoretical  intensity- 
curve  of  the  bands,  as  we  shall  see,  differs  materially  from  that 
observed  in  Nova  Persei.  Secondly^  his  theory  gives  insufficient 
account  of  the  presence  of  the  bright  bands  after  the  continuous 
spectrum  had  disappeared.  For  obviously,  if  the  continuous 
spectrum  is,  in  Dr  Ebert's  opinion,  the  condiHo  sine  qua  nan  for 
the  bands,  we  are  at  a  loss  to  explain  how  these  bands  could  have 
possibly  outlived,  as  they  have  actually  done,  the  incandescence  of 
the  starts  surface.  Thirdly^  the  effect  of  abnormal  dispersion  is 
by  no  means  the  same  for  all  gaseous  media.  According  to  the 
electro-magnetic  theory,  it  depends  on  the  elastic  resistance  of 
the  ions,  a  force  which  cannot  be  supposed  to  be  the  same  for 
different  atoms.  According  to  observation,  even  lines  of  one  and 
the  same  metallic  vapour,  e.g,  sodium,  behave  quite  differently. 
Hence  the  theory  of  abnormal  dispersion  seems  to  offer  no 
explanation  of  that  similarity  in  structure  and  character  of  the 
Nova  bands,  which,  according  to  the  observations,  appears  to  be 
a  fundamental  feature  of  the  Nova  spectrum. 

*  See  H.  Kayser,  Handbiteh  der  Spectroscopies  ii.  p.  825. 
t  Ueher  die  Spectren  der  neuen  Steme^  K,l^.  8917. 


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1904-5.]    On  Prof,  Seeliger's  Theory  of  Temporary  Stars.       515 

If  the  results  of  the  Glasgow  and  Mount  Hamilton  observations 
thus  limit  our  field  of  search  by  excluding  those  explanations  in 
which  the  internal  properties  of  the  vibrating  atoms  must  be 
considered  to  play  an  important  part,  there  remains,  in  my  opinion, 
only  one  explanation  which  is  in  a  priori  agreement  with  the 
observed  facts,  viz.,  that  based  on  Doppler's  principle.  Indeed,  if 
motions  in  the  line  of  sight  are  the  cause  of  the  peculiar  emission 
and  absorption  bands  in  the  spectra  of  the  Novae,  the  similarity 
of  their  structure,  independent  of  the  chemical  nature  of  the 
elements,  and  the  strict  proportionality  of  all  the  displacements 
to  the  wave-length  are  necessary  desiderata.  The  crucial  point 
seems  to  be,  therefore,  this:  On  the  one  hand,  observation  has 
demonstrated  that  the  structure  of  the  bands  is  governed  by  no 
other  conditions  than  that  of  wave-length  ;  on  the  other  hand,  of 
all  explanations,  only  that  based  on  Doppler's  principle  accounts 
for  this  fact :  hence  motions  of  matter  in  the  line  of  sight  must  be 
considered  as  the  probable  cause  of  the  remarkable  spectrum  of 
temporary  stars. 

This  conclusion  has  increased  my  confidence  in  some  theoretical 
views  published  two  years  ago,  by  which  I  attempted  to  explain 
the  Nova  spectrum.  The  new  facts  brought  to  light  by  subse- 
quent observations,  especially  by  those  referred  to,  make  it  now 
desirable  to  again  publish  these  tentative  speculations  in  a  some- 
what modified  form,  and  at  the  same  time  to  compare  the  results 
of  theory  with  our  present  empirical  knowledge. 

Before  entering  upon  the  subject,  I  beg  to  pass  a  few  general 
remarks  of  an  historical  character.  In  the  earlier  days  of  star 
spectroscopy  explanations  of  the  Nova  spectrum  were  pre-eminently 
based  on  Doppler's  principle.  Theoretical  views  focussed  more  or 
less  round  the  one  conception  that  motions  of  radiating  and 
absorbing  matter  must  be  responsible  for  the  observed  displace- 
ments of  the  spectral  lines.  Later,  however,  doubts  began  to  be 
felt  as  to  the  correctness  of  this  view.  Apart  from  the  fact  that  the 
velocities  of  matter  in  the  Novae  exceeded  by  far  the  average 
motions  in  the  line  of  sight  commonly  dealt  with  in  stellar  spectro- 
scopy, a  serious  objection  to  this  view  was  thought  to  be  found  in 
the  striking  similarities  between  the  spectra  of  all  the  Novae 
hitherto   accessible   to   spectroscopic    investigation.     A   universal 


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516  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh,  [aitt, 

feature  of  all  these  spectra  is  the  appearance  of  broad  bright  lines, 
bordered  on  their  more  refrangible  edges  by  diffuse  absorption- 
bands.  Now,  assuming  that  these  composite  bands  were  caused 
by  two  bodies  moving  in  different  directions,  why  should  the  bright 
bands  invariably  appear  on  the  less  refrangible  and  the  dark 
bands  on  tlie  more  refrangible  side?  In  other  words,  why 
should  the  body  or  bodies  giving  the  bright  line  spectrum 
always  move  from  us,  while  those  showing  the  absorption- 
lines  should  be  invariably  directed  towards  us?  It  was  the 
seeming  inexplicability,  on  the  ground  of  Doppler's  principle,  of 
this  universal  phenomenon  which  led  astrophysicists  to  search 
for  other  explanations,  such  as  high  pressure  and  abnormal 
dispersion. 

£ut  if  we  look  more  closely  into  the  question,  the  reasons  for 
abandoning  Doppler's  principle  seem  by  no  means  so  convincing 
as  they  were  thought  to  be.  The  position  was  abandoned  before 
the  field  was  thoroughly  reconnoitred.  Indeed,  I  shall  endeavour 
to  show  in  the  subsequent  remarks  that  an  explanation  of  the 
extremely  complicated  spectrum  of  new  stars  based  on  Doppler's 
principle  is  not  only  possible,  but  also  sufficiently  probable,  on 
account  of  the  simplicity  of  the  underlying  hypotheses  on  the  one 
hand,  and  the  satisfactory  agreement  between  theory  and  observa- 
tion on  the  other. 

The  leading  idea  upon  which  these  considerations  are  based  is 
well  known  to  astronomers  through  Professor  Seeliger's  ingenious 
investigations:  my  present  contribution  is  indeed  merely  an 
extension  of  the  celebrated  theory  which  we  owe  to  this  dis- 
tinguished astronomer.  Seeliger's  hypothesis,  which  ascribes  the 
outburst  of  a  new  star  to  the  collision  between  a  dark  solid  body 
and  matter  of  a  nebular  constituency,  has  so  far  not  been  worked 
out  in  detail,  so  that  no  definite  conclusions  have  been  formed  as 
to  the  motions  of  the  matter  involved  in  the  catastrophe.  In  a 
general  way,  however.  Professor  Seeliger  draws  attention  to  the 
important  r6le  performed  by  the  star's  gravitational  attraction  on 
the  approaching  nebulous  matter,  a  consideration  we  often  find 
seriously  neglected  in  subsequent  investigations.  He  remarks 
that,  OS  the  star  approaches  the  nebulous  cloud,  the  latter,  through 
the  action  of  gravitation,  will  extend  out  to  meet  it.     The  attracted 


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1904-6.]    On  Prof,  Sediger's  Theory  of  Temporary  Stars,       517 

cloud  particles,  in  obedience  to  gravitational  laws,  describe  hyper- 
bolic orbits  round  the  star's  centre  as  focus,  in  exactly  the  same 
manner  as  do  those  meteoric  swarms  of  our  own  system  which 
have  been  launched  upon  us  from  the  remote  recesses  of  space. 
The  idea  occasionally  met  with  in  papers  on  this  subject,  that  the 
star  penetrates  into  the  cloud  as  a  bullet  pierces  the  air,  is 
quite  erroneous.  Its  fallacy  is  so  obvious  that  I  need  not  dwell 
upon  it. 

The  hyperbolic  paths  described  by  the  attracted  particles  are  of 
course  extremely  different  in  shape  and  position,  forming  a  chaos 
of  motions  which  to  unravel  seems  at  first  sight  a  hopeless  task. 
But,  fortunately,  at  least  one  definite  conclusion  may  be  drawn 
which  is  of  vital  importance  for  our  problem.  We  know  that  the 
character  of  the  conic  section  described  by  a  body  round  a  centre 
of  attraction  is  perfectly  defined  by  its  velocity  V  at  any  point  of 
the  orbit.     The  body  describes 

an  ellipse,     ifV2<?^ 
r 

a  parabola,    ifV2  =  ?^        fi^k^  (M  +  m) 
r 

a  hyperbola,  if  V2>?^ 

where  r  is  the  radius  vector  at  that  point  (expressed  in  units  of 
the  mean  distance  O  -  5  )>  ^  ^1<^  Gaussian  constant,  and  M,  m 
the  masses  of  the  attracting  and  attracted  body  in  units  of  the 
solar  mass.  Now,  in  our  case  a  collision  between  the  star  and  a 
meteoric  particle  must  occur  in  all  instances  where  the  perihelion 
distances  are  less  than  the  radius  of  the  star.  Such  particles  will 
impinge  upon  the  surface.  But  impact  means  loss  of  energy  of 
motion  (molar  energy),  which  is  converted  into  kinetic  (molecular) 
energy,  i.e.  heat.  Hence  V,  the  orbital  velocity,  must  be  smaller 
after  the  impact  than  it  had  been  before.  In  other  words,  the 
impact-friction  on  and  near  the  star's  surface,  by  converting  a  more 
or  less  considerable  portion  of  energy  of  motion  into  energy  of  heat, 
acts  as  a  resisting  medium,  with  the  effect  that  in  many  cases  Y 

becomes  less  than  — ,  i.e.  that  the  hyperbolae  are  transformed 
into  ellipses. 


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518 


Proceedings  of  JRoyal  Society  of  Edhiburgh,  [sbss. 


An  example  may  illustrate  this  simple  reasoning.  Suppose  a 
swarm  of  meteors  approaches  the  star  0  from  A  in  hyperbolic 
orbits.  The  perihelion  distance  of  the  inner  particles  is  assumed 
to  be  less  than  the  star's  radius  R.  These  particles  must  im- 
pinge upon  the  star's  surface,  where  their  further  career  will  be 

checked  ;  i.e,  V^,  which  was  greater  than  -^  immediately  before 

the  impact,  will  be  zero  after  the  catastrophe,  supposing  that  the 
whole  orbital  motion  has  been  transformed  into  heat.  On  the 
other  hand,  the  orbital  velocities  of  particles  grazing  the  sur- 
face,  though   impeded   by   surface   friction,  will   undergo  much 


smaller  reductions,  while  bodies  sufficiently  removed  from  the 
star  may  pursue  their  hyperbolic  paths  practically  undisturbed. 
Hence  we  notice  a  gradual  transition  in  the  values  of  V  from  zero 
to  hyperbolic  velocities,  so  that  the  swarm,  although  arriving  at 
the  star  with  practically  uniform  velocity,  exhibits  after  the  impact 
the  most  heterogeneous  motions  of  its  individual  members.  These 
new  motions  determine  the  character  of  the  orbits  described  by 
those  particles  which  are  at  all  capable  of  escaping  the  star  after 
impact.  Since  V  may  have  all  possible  values,  the  new  orbits 
contain  all  possible  conic  sections,  from  the  circle  to  the  hyperbola. 
The  important  point  is,  that  many  of  these  new  orbits  are  closed, 
the  particles  becoming  permanently  attached  to  the  system  of  the 


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1901-5.]    On  Prof,  Seeliger*s  Theory  of  Temporary  Stars,      519 

star.  In  other  words,  as  a  consequence  of  the  collision,  the  star 
l)ecomes  permanently  surrounded  with  a  ring  of  luminous  meteoric 
matter,  revolving  in  ellipses  with  eccentricities  probably  ranging 
from  zero  to  unity.  The  transformation  of  molar  into  molecular 
energy  must  lead  to  incandescence,  which  will  be  in  proportion  to 
the  amount  of  converted  energy.  But  this  latter  is  evidently 
greatest  in  the  case  of  circular  orbits,  because  here  the  reduction 
of  V  from  its  original  hyperbolic  value  is  most  considerable.  Hence 
the  brightest  parts  of  the  ring  are  composed  of  particles  moving 
round  the  star  in  ellipses  of  small  eccentricities. 

Now,  we  cannot  avoid  the  conclusion  that  the  kind  of  collision 
here  described  must  occur  in  the  case  of  a  new  star,  provided  that 
Seeliger's  fundamental  assumptions  be  true.  I  can  imagine  only 
one  exceptional  instance  to  which  the  above  reasoning  would  seem 
inapplicable,  viz.,  that  the  cloud  particles  move  towards  the  star 
exactly  in  the  direction  of  its  centre,  but  I  think  the  scarcity  of 
such  a  phenomenon  will  at  once  be  admitted.  The  most  probable 
assumption  is  that  of  a  more  or  less  one-sided  collision,  such  as  is 
represented  in  fig.  1.  Granting  the  reasoning  so  far,  we  conclude 
that  after  the  catastrophe  the  star  is  surrounded  by  radiating 
nebular  (meteoric)  matter  revolving  in  closed  elliptical  paths 
round  the  star's  centre  as  focus,  the  brightest  nebular  particles 
describing  orbits  of  small  eccentricities. 

The  result  in  this  general  form  is  sufficient  to  assist  us  later  on 
in  the  interpretation  of  the  Nova  spectrum.  With  regard  to  the 
constituency  of  the  luminous  ring,  the  most  general  assumption 
is  that  it  consists  of  a  mixture  of  bodies  in  all  three  states  of 
aggregation — solid,  liquid,  and  gaseous.  But  owing  to  their  high 
power  of  radiation,  the  liquids  and  solids  will  cool  down  much 
sooner  than  the  gases,  so  that  in  a  more  advanced  state  the  spectral 
appearance  of  the  ring  will  be  that  of  an  incandescent  gaseous  body 
emitting  a  line  spectrum. 

The  problem,  in  its  main  principle,  is  seen  to  be  closely  related 
to  Encke's  celebrated  theory  of  a  resisting  medium.  A  force 
acting  near  perihelion  in  the  direction  of  the  tangent  against  the 
orbital  motion  of  a  body  causes  a  progressive  (secular)  diminution 
of  the  major  axis  and  eccentricity  of  the  orbit,  and  therefore  tends 
to  incorporate  the  body  into  the  system  of  the  attracting  centre. 


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520  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Ediriburgh.  [sbss. 

which  otherwise  might  not  he  capahle  of  hringing  the  cosmic 
invader  under  its  permanent  gravitational  sway. 

Still  another  consequence  of  importance,  however,  must  he 
drawn  from  those  fundamental  considerations  hy  which  Professor 
Seeliger  was  guided  in  the  framing  of  his  theory.  We  admit  that 
the  development  of  heat  at  the  surface  of  the  star  must  be 
enormous,  even  granting  the  most  unfavourable  assumptions  as  to 
the  tenuity  of  the  impinging  cloud.  We  may  safely  assume  that 
the  amount  of  heat  developed  during  the  bombardment  may  have 
exceeded  many  times  that  expended  by  the  sun  during  a  corre- 
sponding time.  This  fact  seems  to  warrant  the  conclusion,  not 
only  that  the  surface  of  the  star  is  rapidly  liquefied,  but  also  thai 
from  this  surface  of  molten  lava  an  incessant  escape  takes  place 
of  molecules  with  extremely  high  velocities,  leading  to  the 
formation  of  an  expanding  incandescent  atmosphere  of  vapours 
and  gases.  This  unquestionable  fact  of  an  expanding  atmosphere 
has,  so  far,  not  been  considered  in  theories  of  temporary  stars. 
Is  there  reason  for  neglecting  the  influence  of  its  motions  on  the 
appearance  of  the  lines  in  the  Nova  spectrum  ?  There  can  be  little 
doubt  that  the  gaseous  molecules  escaping  from  the  liquid  surface 
of  the  star  would  tend  towards  a  state  of  eqiiilibrium  such  as  is 
presented  in  the  gaseous  envelopes  surrounding  the  photospheres 
of  ordinary  stars.  The  height  of  this  *  atmosphere '  is  determined 
by  gravitation  on  the  one  hand,  and  by  the  surface  temperature 
on  the  other.  If,  for  instance,  we  assume  the  mass  and  radius  of 
the  star  to  be  equal  to  that  of  the  sun,  and  its  surface  temperature 
to  that  of  the  solar  photosphere,  then  the  atmosphere  would  most 
probably  assume  the  dimensions  of  the  solar  chromosphere,  pro- 
vided that  it  contains  the  same  gaseous  materials.  If,  however, 
the  surface  temperature  of  the  new  star  equals  that  of  the  photo- 
spheres of  so-called  *  white '  stars,  which,  as  we  know,  possess  very 
extensive  atmospheres,  its  gaseous  molecules  would  tend  to  form 
an  envelope  of  similar  dimensions.  Now,  I  have  shown  in  a 
paper  in  the  Astronomische  Nachrichien^  Nos.  3822-3,  that  the 
extension  of  stellar  atmospheres  must  be  supposed  to  increase  very 
rapidly  if  the  surface  temperature  is  raised.  On  the  other  hand, 
as  shown  in  the  same  paper,  our  assumptions  as  to  the  tempera- 
ture of  new  stars  immediately  after  the  collision  are  practically 


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1904-5.]    On  Prof.  Seeligers  Theory  of  Temporary  Stars,       521 

unlimited.  I  have  mentioned  already  that  the  surface  tempera- 
ture of  a  Nova  may  exceed  many  times  that  of  the  solar  photo- 
sphere.*^ Hence  there  is  no  reason  to  contradict  the  assertion  that 
the  atmosphere  of  a  new  star,  after  the  catastrophe,  may  assume 
dimensions  surpassing  considerably  even  those  presented  in  the 
white  stars.  Indeed,  this  atmosphere  may  even  extend  infinitely, 
for  it  is  well  known  that  when  the  temperature  of  the  surface 
exceeds  a  certain  critical  value,  the  height  of  the  atmosphere 
above  the  surface  must  become  infinite,  i,e,  gravitation  then 
proves  insufficient  to  counteract  the  continuous  dissipation  of  the 
gases  into  space.  As  is  shown  in  the  paper  referred  to,  this  state 
of  matters  may  happen  already  at  a  comparatively  low  tempera- 
ture, exceeding  not  many  times  that  of  stars  of  the  Sirian  class 
(/.c,  118).  Now,  in  this  peculiar  case  of  infinite  expansion,  the 
initial  velocities  of  the  gaseous  molecules  at  the  surface  must  have 
been  greater  than  the  so-called  critical  velocity  of  the  star  (t.6. 
610  km.  per  second  if  the  sun's  mass  and  dimensions  be  assumed). 

*  Some  estimate  of  the  amount  of  heat  develojied  by  the  impact  may  be 
gained  from  the  following  consideration.  Supitose  the  materials  of  a  cosmic 
cloud  to  fall  from  infinity  upon  onr  sun.  The  velocity  V  with  which  the 
cloud  particles  arrive  at  the  sun's  surface  is  hyperbolic,  and  therefore 
greater  than  600  km.  per  second.  Now  we  know  that  1  kgr.  matter  moving 
with  a  velocity  of  V  metres  per  second,  if  completely  stopped,  develops  a 

quantity  of  heat  which  equals   -j^*  «"  calories.     If,  then,  a  quantity  of 

8330 

cosmic  matter  weighing  1  kgr.  at  the  surface  of  the  earth  would  impinge 

upon  the  sun  with  parabolic  velocity  (Hbout  600,000  metres  per  second),  ca. 

45  millions  of  calories  would  be  developed  by  the  collision.     Suppose  that 

during  every  second  1  kgr.  matter  impinges  upon  the  area  of  1  square  metre, 

then   the  heat  developed  would  be  about   2400  times  the  amount  of  heat 

actually  radiated  by  our  sun  during  the  same  time.     Now  it  is  easy  to  see 

that  this  kgr.  of  matter  is  distributed  within  a  parallelopipedon  whose  basis 

is  1  square  metre  and   whose  height  is  600  km.,  because  when  the  first 

particle  of  the  kilogram  arrives  at  the  surface,    the  last   particle  which 

impinges  exactly  one  second  later  will  be,  rou)(hly  speaking,  at  a  distance  of 

600,000  metres  from  the  surface.     But  the  density  of  such  a  cloud  is  only 

about  1  :  800,000  of  the  density  of  air  at  ordinary  temperature  and  pressnre. 

Hence  we  conclude  that  an  all-round  impact  of  cosmic  matter  whose  density 

is  only  the  1  : 2,000,000,000th  part  of  that  of  our  atmosphere  would  still 

produce  an  amount  of  heat  equivalent  to  the  energy  radiated  into  space 

during  the  same  time  by  our  sun  under  normal  circumstances.    This  rough 

calculation  appears  to  justify  the  remark  in  the  text,  that  the  amount  of 

heat  supplied  by  the  collision  may  indeed   be  assumed  to  be  practically 

unlimited. 


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522  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh,  [sess. 

Such  velocities  are  of  the  order  of  magnitude  which  would  corre- 
spond to  the  displacements  in  the  spectra  of  new  stars  if  thej 
were  to  he  explained  on  the  hasis  of  Doppler's  principle.  Hence, 
if  the  expansion  of  the  Nova  atmosphere  is  associated  with 
enormous  surface  temperature,  the  velocities  involved  must  have 
a  most  profound  hearing  on  the  structure  of  the  spectrum.  This 
conclusion  necessitates  an  examination  of  the  spectral  character  of 
lines  emitted  hy  gases  which  form  a  rapidly  expanding  atmosphere 
round  the  incandescent  nucleus  of  the  star.  It  may  he  well  to 
rememher  at  this  stage  that  we  are  hy  no  means  unfamiliar  with 
the  phenomenon  of  rapid  gaseous  expansion  at  the  surfaces  of 
celestial  hodies.  Notahle  instances  are  afforded  in  the  sidar 
eruptions,  where  the  motions  sometimes  recorded  fall  little  ahori 
of  the  sun's  critical  velocity.  My  opinion  on  these  phenomena, 
more  fully  expressed  in  the  paper  referred  to,  is  that  they  are 
the  inevitahle  consequences  of  local  changes  of  temperature  in 
the  interior  layers  of  the  sun.  If,  for  some  reason  or  other,  upon 
which  I  will  not  enter  at  present,  the  temperature  of  the  photo- 
sphere at  a  certain  locality  should  he  raised  to  that,  say,  of  a 
Sirian  star,  the  conditions  of  equilihrium  over  this  particular 
area  would  require  that  the  hydrogen  atmosphere  of  the  son 
should  expand  to  the  dimensions  of  the  hydrogen  atmosphere  of 
Sirius.  What  we  perceive  in  a  solar  eruption  is  therefore,  accord- 
ing to  this  view,  the  violent  transition  from  a  state  of  atmospheric 
equilihrium  at  solar  temperature  to  that  corresponding  to  the 
higher  Sirian  temperature.  If  the  sun  were  suddenly  homharded 
by  a  shower  of  meteors,  raising  the  temperature  of  the  photosphere, 
an  inevitahle  consequence  would  be  the  rapid  development  of  a 
protuberance  over  the  place  of  impact,  simply  because  the  atmo- 
sphere would  tend  to  assume  that  form  of  thermal  and  mechanical 
equilibrium  which  corresponds  to  the  higher  temperature  of  the 
layers  underneath.  I  conclude  that  the  expansion  in  solar  erup- 
tions and  that  of  the  atmospheres  on  new  stars  are  analogous 
phenomena,  in  both  cases  due  to  the  tendency  on  the  part  of 
the  gaseous  molecules  to  assume  that  state  of  equilibrium  which 
corresponds  to  the  temperature  at  the  surface.  If  this  analogy  be 
accepted,  and  if  we  take  note  of  the  high  velocities  so  often  re- 
vealed in  the  solar  gases,  we  see  probably  no  further  difficulty  in 


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1904-6.]    On  Prof.  Sediger's  Theory  of  Temporary  Stars,       523 

admittiDg  enormous  atmospheric  expansion  in  temporary  stars. 
The  correctness  of  this  view  will  be  more  fully  evidenced  if  we 
now  investigate  the  effects  of  such  a  rapidly  expanding  gaseous 
envelope  on  the  appearance  of  the  spectrum.  Almost  at  a  glance 
we  notice  that  a  satisfactory  explanation  of  one  of  the  most 
enigmatic  features  of  the  Nova  spectrum  is  here  offered. 

To  show  this  in  a  few  words,  let  us  consider  the  star  immediately 
after  the  coHision,  when  its  surface  is  in  a  state  of  high  incandes- 
cence, and  when  the  gaseous  matter  evaporating  from  the  surface 
expands  in  radial  directions  outwards.     Let  the  circle  A  A'  repre- 

S^2 


sent  the  boundary  of  the  star  nucleus  in  a  plane  passing  through 
the  observer,  0  E  being  the  line  of  sight.  We  suppose  the  outside 
boundary  of  the  expanding  atmosphere  at  this  particular  moment 
to  be  at  B  C  C  B'  D'  D.  We  may  also  assume  the  star  to  be  so 
far  removed  that  the  light  of  its  photosphere  («=  incandescent 
star  surface)  and  of  the  surrounding  atmosphere  is  tlirown  simul- 
taneously upon  the  slit  of  the  spectroscope.  Now,  obviously, 
all  the  rays  leaving  the  photosphere  in  the  direction  OE,  i.e. 
towards  us,  have  to  pass  through  that  part  of  the  atmosphere 
which  lies  within  the  area  ADD' A'.  The  natural  assumption 
being  that  the  gases  of  the  outside  layers  at  D  D',  in  consequence 


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524  Proceedings  of  Boyod  Society  of  Edinbvnrgh,  [i 

of  cooling  by  expansion,  are  at  a  lower  temperature  than  the 
photosphere,  absorption-lines,  characteristic  of  the  subetances  of 
the  atmosphere,  appear  in  the  otherwise  continuous  photoepheric 
spectrum.  But  since  all  these  atmospheric  particles  move  towards 
us,  their  lines  must  be  displaced  towards  the  more  refrangible  eide 
of  the  spectrum,  in  accordance  with  Doppler's  principle.  Now, 
it  will  be  noticed  that,  in  whatever  direction  we  may  look  at 
the  star,  i.e.  in  whatever  part  of  space  the  observer  may  be 
stationed,  the  phenomenon  will  always  be  the  same.  The  dis- 
placement of  the  absorption-lines  towards  the  more  refrangible 
side  of  the  spectrum  is  therefore  a  general  feature  peculiar  to  all 
stars  possessing  expanding  atmospheres. 

There  are  two  reasons  why  these  absorption-lines,  instead  of 
being  narrow  and  sharply  defined,  as  in  normal  star  spectra, 
should  be  broad  and  hazy.  Firstly,  the  motions  of  the  gaseous 
particles  towards  us  are  not  uniform.  We  may  take  it  for  certain 
that  considerable  differences  must  exist  in  the  amount  and 
direction  of  these  motions  which  would  tend  to  broaden  the 
lines.  Secondly,  the  density  of  the  atmosphere  near  the  surface 
may  be  considerable,  especially  during  the  first  stages  of  the 
star's  development.  We  know  that  from  this  cause,  too,  a 
broadening  of  the  lines  may  be  expected.  Considering  the 
doubtless  violent  character  of  the  catastrophe,  we  may  also  safely 
conclude  that  the  broadening  due  to  the  causes  mentioned  must 
have  been  considerable. 

We  now  turn  our  attention  to  the  radiations  emanating 
from  those  parts  of  the  expanding  atmosphere  lying  inside  the 
segments  DBG  and  D'  B'  C.  Obviously  the  spectrum  produced 
by  these  radiations  must  show  bright  lines,  characteristic  of  the 
same  substances  which  cause  the  absorption  spectrum  in  front  of 
the  star.  But  since  in  this  case  there  are  as  many  motions  toward* 
OS  from  us,  tlie  centres  of  these  lines — which  are  also  broad  and 
hazy,  owing  to  the  effects  of  density  and  divergence  of  directions 
— must  appear  in  their  normal  positions. 

In  consequence  of  the  great  distance  of  the  star,  the  two  spectra 
are  superimposed  upon  one  another  in  the  spectroscope.  We  see, 
therefore,  a  double  spectrum,  consisting  of  broad  bright  lines  in 
approximately  normal  positions,  edged  on  their  more  refrangible 


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1904-6.]   On  Prof,  Sedigei*'8  Theory  of  Temporary  Stars.       525 

sides  by  broad  and  hazy  absorption-lines,  these  duplex  lines  being 
projected  on  the  continuous  photospheric  spectrum. 

This  consideration  of  the  conditions  prevailing  on  a  star 
whose  atmosphere  is  rapidly  expanding  leads  already  to  con- 
clusions with  regard  to  the  character  of  its  spectrum  which  are  in 
satisfactory  agreement  with  the  principal  and  most  important 
feature  of  the  Nova  spectrum.  Our  conclusions  require  only  some 
further  modification  through  the  existence  of  the  rotating  ring  of 
luminous  matter  we  have  considered  before.  Great  significance 
must  be  attached  to  the  fact  that  the  same  type  of  spectrum  must 
appear  under  all  circumstances,  whatever  may  be  the  relative 
positions  of  star  and  observer.  Hence  the  remarkable  uniformity 
of  the  spectra  of  all  the  Novae  appears  to  be  capable  of  a  simple 
explanation. 

According  to  the  views  here  expressed,  the  described  phenomena 
should  occur  in  a  certain  sequence  which  deserves  careful  attention. 
The  immediate  effect  of  the  collision  being  incandescence  of  the 
star's  surface,  the  spectrum  of  the  star,  at  the  moment  of  the 
catastrophe,  will  be  purely  continuous.  Subsequent  to  this 
stage,  which  is  probably  of  short  duration,  we  have  the 
development  of  the  expanding  atmosphere,  which  impresses  its 
existence  on  the  spectrum  only  after  the  expanding  gases  have 
cooled  below  the  temperature  of  the  surface.  At  this  stage  broad 
and  diffuse  dark  lines,  strongly  displaced  towards  the  violet,  make 
their  appearance.  Some  further  time  will  elapse,  however,  before 
the  atmospheric  halo  round  the  star  has  sufficiently  expanded 
to  render  its  bright  lines  visible  against  the  luminous  background 
of  the  continuous  spectrum.  Now  this  order  of  events  deduced  from 
the  theory  seems  to  be  confirmed  by  certain  observations.  In  the 
case  of  Nova  Persei,  thanks  to  its  timely  discovery  by  Dr  Anderson, 
we  were  fortunately  permitted  to  watch  the  celestial  catastrophe 
almost  from  its  very  commencement.  When  the  spectrum 
was  first  viewed  here  in  Edinburgh  by  the  Astronomer- Royal  for 
Scotland  on  the  early  evening  of  the  22nd  February  1901,  it 
certainly  appeared  to  be  purely  continuous.  A  few  hours  later, 
however,  I  noticed  distinctly  faint  dark  bands,  one  of  which  agreed 
in  position  with  the  absorption-band  afterwards  noted  on  the 
violet  edge  of  the  bright  F-line.     On  that  night  emission-bands 


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526  Proceedings  of  Boyal  Society  of  Edinburgh,  [sess. 

were  not  conspicuous.  A  few  days  afterwards  these  bright  bands 
appeared  strongly  developed,  and  were  then  the  most  promi- 
nent feature  of  the  spectrum. 

I  liave  already  mentioned  that  the  rotating  ring  of  luminous 
nebular  matter  modi  ties  to  a  certain  extent  the  appearance  of  the 
spectral  lines.  Its  effect  will  be  to  produce  two  additional  maxima 
of  brightness,  the  one  displaced  towards  the  red,  the  other 
towards  the  violet.     For  in  whatever  direction  we  may  view  the 


star— unless  the  line  of  sight  be  at  right  angles  to  the  plane  of 
rotation — we  will  always  have  some  substance  of  the  ring  moving 
towards  us  on  the  one  side  of  the  star,  and  matter  moving  from  us 
on  the  other.  Between  these  maxima  a  more  or  less  hazy  absorp- 
tion-line appears  at  approximately  normal  wave-length  (leaving,  of 
course,  out  of  consideration  the  relative  motion  of  the  whole 
system  :  star  +  ring).  This  absorption-line  is  due  to  the  gaseous 
particles  of  the  ring  travelling  in  front  of  the  star,  as  seen  from  the 
standpoint  of  the  observer.  (Compare  the  sketch  given  in  fig.  3.) 
The  complete  structure  of  the  bands  is  determined  by  these 


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1904-5.]   On  Prof,  Seeliger's  Theory  of  Temporary  Stars.      527 

considerations.  We  obtain  an  at  least  approximate  idea  of  the 
appearance  of  such  a  band,  so  far  as  it  is  due  to  the  radiations  of 
the  photosphere  and  the  expanding  atmosphere,  by  combining  the 
intensity-curves  of  (1)  the  continuous  spectrum  in  the  neighbour- 
hood of  the  line,  (2)  the  absorption -band  displaced  towards  the 
violet,  and  (3)  the  emission-band  at  normal  wave-length.  A  com- 
bined band  of  this  character  is  schematically  represented  in  fig.  4, 
A  A  representing  the  normal  position  of  the  special  line. 


On  the  other  hand,  the  radiations  contributed  to  the  band  by 
the  luminous  ring  may  be  roughly  represented  by  the  intensity- 
curve  in  fig.  5.  If,  in  combining  the  two  curves  4  and  5,  we  apply 
the  simple  additive  rule,  we  obtain  the  total  intensity-curve  of  the 
band  in  fig.  6.  Since  our  assumptions  as  to  the  relative  shift  and 
intensity  of  the  various  components  must  of  necessity  be  vague, 
there  are,  of  course,  many  ways  of  drawing  these  curves,  and  the 
diagrams  therefore  represent  only  one  special  case  out  of  a  great 
number  of  possible  combinations.  But  in  constructing  the  curves  I 
have  aimed  at  adapting  their  relative  dimensions  to  the  phenomena 
actually  observed  in  one  particular  case  of  new  stars,  viz.,  in  Nova 


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528 


Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh.  [sebr. 


Aurigae.  Afterwards  I  shall  have  occasion  to  exhibit  other  cnrres 
representative  of  the  conditions  present  in  Nova  Persei,  and  I  shall 
then  be  in  a  position  to  show  how  the  observed  dififerences  in  the 
character  of  the  bands  of  these  two  stars  can  be  accounted  for. 
Fixing  our  attention  for  the  present  on  fig.  6,  we  notice  a  broad 
bright  band  strongly  displaced  towards  the  red,  and  a  broad  diffuse 
absorption-band  considerably  shifted  towards  the  violet.  A  re- 
markable feature  is  the  distinct  appearance  of  seeming  '  reversals ' 
in  both  the  emission-  and  absorption -bands.  Now,  this  same 
phenomenon  was  noticed  in  the  observed  spectrum.  I  may  quote 
the  following  remark  from  Scheiner- Frost's  Astronomical  Spec- 
troscopy^ pp.  288-9  : — "  The  microscopical  examination  of  the 
photographic  spectra  showed  the  individual  lines,  both  dark 
and  bright,  to  be  quite  complex.  A  fine  bright  line  could  be  seen 
extending  down  through  the  middle  of  many  of  the  dark  lines, 
and  many  of  the  bright  lines  had  two  or  more  points  of  maximum 

intensity From  measurements  on  nine  plates  obtained 

at  Potsdam  between  14th  February  and  4th  March  (1892)  Vogel 
deduces  the  following  results,  to  which  are  added  those  calculated 
by  Vogel  from  CampbelPs  measurements  on  six  plates  taken  between 
8th  February  and  6th  March,  and  those  published  by  Belopolsky  from 
measurements  on  six  plates  taken  from  24th  February  to  3rd  March 
1892.  The  velocities  have  been  corrected  for  the  motion  of  the 
earth,  and  are  therefore  relative  to  the  sun.  A  +  velocity  denotes 
recession  from  the  sun,  a  -  velocity  approach  toward  the  sun. 

Displacements  in  Tenth-Metres, 


Line  employed. 

Bright  line 
within  dark. 

First  Max. 
of  intensity. 

Second  Max. 
of  intensity. 

Third  Max. 
of  intensity. 

5> 

H5 
H 
K 
Vogel  Mean 

-10-3 

-  9-8 
-101 

-  9-4 

-  9-8 

-0-1 
-0-8 
-21 
-1-7 
-1-2 

+  8-2 
+  6-4 
+  36 
+  8-3 
+  6-1 

F 
Campbell  Mean 

-10-4 

-  9-3 

-  7- 

-  8-9 

... 
... 

+  8-8 
+  7-2 
+  6- 

+  7-2 

+  14-4 

Belopolhky  Wy 

-    9-8 

-0-7 

+  8-6 

+  16-7 

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1904-5.]    On  Prof,  Seeliger's  Theory  of  Temporary  Sta7\s.       529 

The  bright  bands  showed  two  maxima,  except  Hy,  where 
three  were  noticed.  We  know,  however,  from  the  observations  of 
the  spectrum  of  Nova  Persei,  that  the  Hy  band  has  a  specially 
complex  structure,  being  overlapped  by  another  band  on  the  less 
refrangible  side.  The  third  maximum  noticed  in  Nova  Aurigae 
may  therefore  not  belong  to  the  Hy  radiations  at  all.  Accepting 
this  not  improbable  supposition,  we  conclude  that  in  Nova  Aurigae 
the  bright  bands  showed  two  maxima  with  displacement  of  -  0*6 
and  +6*3  tenth-metres,  whereas  the  absorption-band  exhibited  a 
maximum  in  form  of  a  bright  line  at  -  9*6  tenth -metres.  If  we 
assume  a  common  motion  of  the  whole  system  of  about  -  1*6  t.m., 
the  reduced  motions  of  the  maxima  of  the  bright  band  would  be 
+  1*0  and  +7*9  t.m.,  and  that  of  the  maximum  in  the  absorption- 
band  -  8*0  t.m.  Now  if  we  draw  the  observed  intensity-curve 
corresponding  to  the  arbitrary  scale  of  fig.  6,  the  positions  of  the 
three  maxima  will  be  indicated  by  the  three  arrows  above  the 
curve.  We  notice,  therefore,  that  the  relative  distances  between 
these  maxima  are  very  closely  represented  by  the  theoretical  curve 
in  our  diagram.  At  this  stage  we  may  submit  the  theory  to  a 
further  test,  which  in  my  opinion  goes  far  to  show  its  probability. 
Doubtless  the  presence  of  the  continuous  spectrum  has  a  decisive 
influence  on  the  appearance  of  the  bands,  whose  character  on  the 
more  refrangible  side  is  mainly  determined  by  the  absorption-band 
which  is  caused  by  gaseous  matter  moving  between  the  in- 
candescent star  and  the  observer.  But  we  know  from  observations 
that  in  Nova  Aurigae,  as  well  as  in  Nova  Persei,  the  continuous 
spectrum  has  gradually  faded  away  in  such  a  degree  that  tlio 
star  in  its  last  stages  of  luminosity  was  almost  entirely  reduced  to 
its  gaseous  emissions.  Seeliger's  hypothesis  explains  this  course 
of  events  quite  naturally.  We  have  only  to  consider  that  an 
incandescent  solid  or  liquid  radiates  heat  more  freely  than  a  gas, 
and  also  that  the  brilliance  of  the  star  nucleus  is  confined  to  a 
shallow  surface  layer  whose  energy  will  be  rapidly  dissipated. 
We  may  ask  :  What  becomes  of  the  band  shown  in  fig.  6  after  the 
continuous  spectrum  has  disappeared?  Considering  that  the 
former  absorptions  Mrill  now  have  become  radiations,  the  combined 
spectrum  of  the  bands  will  be  represented  by  an  intensity-curve 
such  as  is  shown  in  fig.  7.     Here,  again,  our  want  of  knowledge 

PROC.  ROY.  SOC.  BDIN. — VOL.  XXV.  34 


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530  Proceedings  of  Royai  Society  of  Edinbavgh,  [i 

of  the  actual  intensities  of  all  the  components  implicated  in  the 
formation  of  the  band  renders  it  impossible  to  select  from  the 
infinite  number  of  possible  cases  the  one  which  corresponds  to  the 
actual  conditions.  But  the  fact  I  want  to  point  out  here  will  be 
shovm  under  all  circumstances.  It  becomes  at  once  apparent  if 
we  compare  the  bright  band  of  fig.  7  with  that  of  fig.  6. 
While  the  continuous  spectrum  was  present,  the  band  appeared 
shifted  towards  the  red  (fig,  6) ;  after  the  continuous  spectrum 
had  vanished,  the  band  appears  in  approximately  normal 
position,  but  the  maximum  of  light  lies  on  the  violet  side  (fig.  7). 


cE^  Y^-v^t  s 

It  is  readily  noticed  that  the  excess  of  brightness  on  the  more 
refrangible  side  is  due  to  the  expanding  atmosphere  between  star 
and  observer.  Since  the  density  of  this  atmosphere  must  be 
supposed  to  diminish  in  the  course  of  time,  the  same  quantity  of 
gas  occupying  more  and  more  extended  spaces  on  its  outward 
journey,  and  since  at  the  same  time  its  temperature  will  be 
reduced  by  expansion,  its  contribution  to  the  light  of  the  bands 
will  gradually  lessen,  and  we  may  finally  imagine  a  state  in  which 
ihe  light  of  the  star  is  mainly  due  to  the  gaseous  radiations  of  the 
ring,  whose  temperature  may  be  maintained  for  a  more  consider- 
able time  by  the  doubtless  frequent  collisions  between  its  in- 
dividual meteoric  members.     At  this  stage  the  intensity-curve  of 


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19J4-5.]    On  Prof,  Seeliger*s  Theory  of  Temp&rary  Stars.       531 

the  band  will  somewhat  resemble  that  given  in  fig.  8,  the  light 
being  now  distributed  symmetrically  to  the  normal  position.  The 
sequence  of  phenomena,  as  theory  would  require  it,  may  therefore 
be  described  as  follows.  While  the  continuous  spectrum  was  bril- 
liant, the  observer  must  have  noticed  a  strong  displacement  of  the 
bright  bands  towards  the  red.  We  eaw  already  that  this  conclusion 
is  borne  out  by  the  observations  (fig.  6).  After  the  vanishing  of 
the  continuous  spectrum,  however,  the  same  bands  must  have 
appeared  shifted  towards  the  violet,  since  then  the  maximum  on 
which  the  observer  would  make  his  mettsurements,  on  account  of 
the  breadth  and  indistinctness  of  the  band,  lies  on  the  violet  side 
(fig.  7).  The  observer  would  therefore  gain  the  impression  that 
the  star's  motion  in  the  line  of  sight  had  been  considerably 
changed  during  the  interval  between  his  two  observations. 

This  apparent  shift  towards  the  more  refrangible  side  would 
gradually  lessen,  and  finally  the  bright  bands  would  appear  in  their 
normal  positions  (provided  that  the  common  motion  of  the  whole 
system  has  been  accounted  for).  Now,  the  student  of  the  spectro- 
scopic evolution  of  Nova  Aurigae  will  at  once  recognise  an  agreement 
between  these  theoretical  conclusions  and  the  facts  actually  observed. 
The  agreement  is  sufficiently  demonstrated  by  the  following  data. 
It  is  well  known  that  the  spectrum  of  Nova  Aurigae  during  its  last 
stages  of  luminosity,  from  August  1902  to  the  end  of  1903,  wa& 
almost  purely  gaseous,  and  resembled  that  of  a  planetary  nebula. 
There  is  also  the  possibly  strongest  evidence  that  Clie  hydrogen- 
lines  were  represented  in  this  later  spectrum  as  well  as  in  that  of 
the  former  period  when  continuous  radiation  was  powerful.  In 
the  following  table  I  give  the  measured  wave-lengths  of  these  lines, 
in  both  cases,*  and  also  their  normal  wave-lengths  : — 

First  Period  (Feb.  1892).  Secon«l  Period  (An^.  1892). 
Continuoas  Spectrum,  Contiuuous  Spectrura, 

strong.  feeble  or  absent  (?).       Normal  wave-length 

Two  Maxima  in  Maxima  of  of  H-lines. 

bright  H-bands.  bright  H-baiids. 

Hr  «JJ:8f  4336  43«« 

4098  4101-9 

Of.  Scheiner-Frost,  pp.  287  and  291. 


HS  4108      ( 

4102 


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532  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh,  [sess. 

While  we  notice  a  displacement  of  the  centres  of  the  lines 
towards  the  red  in  the  first  period,  we  also  see  clearly  their  shiit 
towardh  the  violet  in  the  second  period,  therefore  confirming  the 
conclusions  drawn  from  figs.  6  and  7.  Now,  Professor  Campbell 
of  the.  Lick  Observatory  has  given  special  attention  to  this  shift 
of  the  bands  during  the  second  period,  and  has  found  evidence 
of  a  tendency  of  these  bands  to  approach  their  normal  positions. 
His  measurements  were  made  on  the  chief  nebular  line  X=  5007  15 
(normal).  They  are  exhibited  in  the  following  table  taken  from 
p.  293  of  Scheiner-Frost's  Asironomiecd  Spectroscopy. 


1892.  Aug. 

20-30. 

X  =  5003-3 

AX  = 

-  3-8  t.m. 

Sept. 

3-22. 

5002-2 

-4-9 

Oct. 

12-19. 

5003-7 

-3-4 

Nov. 

2-24. 

5004-6 

-2-5 

1893.  Feb, 

10-27. 

50060 

-1-1 

Mar. 

26- May  9. 

5005-3 

-1-8 

Aug.     6-Oct.  10.        5005-9  -1-2 

The  decrease  in  AX  in  quite  apparent.  In  1892  the  displacement 
amounted  to  about  -  4  t.m.,  a  value  which  agrees  very  well  with 
that  of  the  H-lines  of  the  preceding  table.  In  1893,  on  the  other 
hand,  the  displacement  was  only  about  -  1*5  t.m.  Since  we  had 
found  before  from  other  coiisideiations  that  this  was  probably  in 
amount  and  sign  the  common  displacement  of  the  whole  system, 
we  conclude  'that  at  this  stage  the  in  tensity -curve  of  the  bands 
must  have  approximately  agreed  with  that  given  in  fig.  8. 

Thus  the  theory  here  discussed  seems  to  offer  a  simple  and 
probable  explanation  of  an  otherwise  extremely  puzzling  pheno- 
menon, viz.,  of  the  enormous  shift  of  the  bands  from  red  towards 
violet  during  the  time  between  the  first  and  second  period  of  the 
history  of  Nova  Aurigae. 

So  far,  our  attempt  to  explain  the  character  of  the  spectrum  of 
Novae  on  the  basis  of  Seeliger's  theory  has  been  of  a  purely 
qualitative  character.  It  is  important  to  show  now  its  possibility 
also  from  the  quantitative  point  of  view.  In  order  to  explain  the 
displacements  of  the  absorption-bands  towards  the  violet  by 
motions  in  the  line  of  sight,  we  have  to  assume  average  velocities 
of  the  expanding  gases  amounting  to  about  600  km.  per  second. 


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1904-5.]    On  Prof.  Seeliger*$  Theory  of  Temporary  Stars,       533 

This  figure  exceeds  the  average  velocity  of  the  outrushing  gases  in 
solar  eruptions,  but  it  may  nevertheless  be  assumed  to  be  at  least 
of  the  order  of  these  velocities.  If,  therefore,  we  grant  the 
reality  of  the  motions  in  the  case  of  the  sun,  we  should  find  no 
difficulty  in  accepting  the  explanation  of  the  absorption-bands  in 
new  stars  which  I  have  proposed  in  this  paper.  I  fully  admit 
that  a  physical  explanation  of  such  exorbitant  velocities  in 
expanding  gases  has  still  to  be  framed,  and  that  our  present 
thermodynamical  views,  by  accepting  Boyle's  law,  offer  no  clue 
whatever.  But  these  views,  it  must  be  remembered,  are  based 
on  conceptions  of  molecular  matter  which  we  now  admit  to  be 
imperfect.  The  new  physics  of  the  molecule  and  atom  is  quite 
dififerent  from  that  which  led  formerly  to  the  kinetic  explanation 
of  Boyle's  law.  We  are  no  longer  permitted  to  conceive  of  the 
motions  of  gaseous  molecules  at  solar  temperatures  as  being 
exclusively  governed  by  the  frequency  and  intensity  of  their 
mutual  impacts,  and  uninfluenced  by  any  other  forces  acting 
between  them.  A  number  of  facts  point  to  the  conclusion  that 
gases  emitting  line-spectra  are  ionised.  If  this  view  is  accepted, 
we  have  to  take  into  consideration  the  electric  agencies  which  are 
brought  into  play  in  cases  of  moving  electric  charges,  and  which, 
as  Professor  J.  J.  Thomson  and  others  have  shown,  influence 
profoundly  our  conceptions  of  mechanical  mass  and  energy.  The 
kinetic  theory  of  an  ionised  gas  is  therefore  diflerent  from  that  of 
an  electrically  neutral  gas,  because  in  the  former  internal  forces, 
viz.  electric  agencies,  are  operating  which  are  not  present  in  the 
latter.  But  the  existence  of  these  electric  forces  demands  the 
introduction  of  an  internal  virial  in  Clausius'  fundamental  equa- 
tion, which  means,  in  other  words,  that  Boyle's  law  is  inapplicable, 
since  the  definition  of  a  so-called  *  perfect  *  gas  excludes  the 
presence  of  an  internal  virial.  Now,  our  difficulty  in  under- 
standing the  greatness  of  motions  in  solar  eruptions  arises  mainly 
from  the  fact  that  we  have  hitherto  considered  the  gases  on  the 
sun  as  being  in  this  *  perfect '  state,  and  therefore  have  accepted 
Boyle's  law  as  the  basis  from  which  we  formed  our  opinions  of  the 
greatest  possible  speeds  in  expanding  gases  at  solar  temperatures. 
We  have  reasoned  in  the  following  way  :  The  velocity  with  which 
a  certain  disturbance  of  equilibrium  within  the  gas  can  be  propa- 


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534  Proceedings  of  B<yyal  Society  of  Bdinhargk,  [i 

gated  by  internal  mechanical  agencies  can  under  no  ciicumstances 
exceed  that  with  which  sound  would  travel  through  the  gas.     Now, 
we  have  a  fairly  warranted  estimate  of  the  surface  temperature  of 
the  sun,  and  with  this  ^temperature  we  can  compute  the  speed  of 
sound  in  the  solar  chromosphere.     But  we  find  that  the  computed 
velocity  falls  considerably  short  of  that  usually  noticed  in  solar 
jwominences.     Hence  we  argue   that   the  phenomenon  of  solar 
eruptions  cannot  be  explained  on  the  basis  of    thermodynamical 
reasoning.     The  argumentation  seems  strong  enough,  only  we  must 
not  forget  that  our  computation  of  the  velocity  of  sound  is  essen- 
tially founded   on   Boyle's  law.      If,   for  instance,  we  assumed 
that  between  the  molecules  of  the  solar  gases  powerful  repulsive 
forces  were  acting,  the  computed  speed  of  sound  would  become 
considerably  greater,  and  hence  our  conclusion  as  to  the  maximum 
speed  of  propagation  would  also  differ  from  that  we  hold  at  present. 
We  are,  I   think,  clearly  placed  before  the  alternative :  either 
Boyle's  law  is  correct,  then  it  is  difficult  to  see  how  solar  eruptions 
can  be  real  displacements  of  matter;  or  Boyle's  law  does  not 
express  the  true  kinetic  conditions  existing  in  solar  gases,  then  the 
high  velocities  in  solar  eruptions  become  conceivable  if  we  assume 
powerful  repulsive  forces  acting  between  the  molecules.     As  I 
mentioned   before,  there  are  reasons  which  seem   to  favour  the 
second  alternative.     If,  for  instance,  we  accept  the  modem  view 
that  radiation  is  due  to  motions  of  the  electrons  within  the  atom 
or  molecule,  are  we  not  bound  to  look  upon  the  molecules  of  an 
incandescent  gas  as  moving  electric  currents  ?    And  suppose,  under 
this  condition,  two  molecules  to  approach  each  other,  will  not  the 
induced   electric   force   tend   to   drive   them  apart,  i.e.  act  as  a 
repulsive  force  ?     We  are  quite  certain  that  this  will  happen  in 
the  case  of  ordinary  currents  and  conductors,  such  as  we  are  able 
to  produce  in  laboratories  :  why  not  also  in  currents  of  molecular 
dimensions?    What  difference  is  there  between  a  current  produced 
by  electrons  moving  along  a  conducting  wire,  and  one  caused  by 
electrons  moving  round  the  nucleus  of  the  atom  or  molecule  ?    I 
think   questions   of   this  kind  may  at   least  shake  the  hitherto 
implicit  confidence  in  the  so-called  '  perfect '  state  of  incandescent 
gases,  and  may  also  make   us  aware  that  the  kinetic  theory  of 
matter  endowed  with  distinct  inherent  electric  properties  must 


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1904-6.]    On  Prof.  Seeliger*8  Theory  of  Temporary  Stars.       535 

differ    essentially   from    that    with    which    we    are    at    present 
familiar. 

The  object  of  this  short  transgression  upon  the  field  of  molecular 
physics  is  to  show  that  the  reality  of  enormous  velocities  in 
expanding  gases,  such  as  we  see  in  solar  eruptions,  cannot  well  be 
refuted  by  a  reasoning  based  on  conceptions  of  molecular  matter 
in  which  electric  agencies  are  ignored.  There  is  no  cogent  reason, 
either  on  the  part  of  theory  or  observation,  which  would  force  us 
to  pronounce  \he  displacements  of  gaseous  matter  on  the  sun  as 
'appearances'  only.  Hence,  from  the  point  of  view  here 
advocated,  the  stupendous  rate  of  expansion  of  the  '  atmosphere ' 
of  a  new  star  may  also  be  brought  within  the  range  of  mental 
comprehension.  It  must  be  considered  as  a  decided  advantage  of 
this  theory  that  the  asserted  displacements  of  the  spectral  lines  by 
motions  of  expanding  gases  in  the  line  of  sight  are  phenomena 
clearly  noticeable  in  solar  spectroscopic  observations,  whereas 
we  have  no  recorded  instance  in  cosmic  evolution  which  might 
support,  in  a  similar  convincing  manner,  the  assumption  of 
exorbitant  pressure  or  of  abnormal  refraction. 

We  will  now  turn  to  the  quantitative  test  of  the  displacements 
caused  by  the  rotating  ring.  The  motions  in  the  line  of  sight  are 
here,  according  to  the  theory,  of  the  order  of  the  orbital  velocities 
of  bodies  revolving  roimd  the  nucleus  of  the  attracting  star  near 
its  surface.  If  we  assume  the  star  of  the  mass  and  dimensions  of 
our  sun,  and  if  we  remember  that  the  brightest  part  of  the  ring 
is  formed  by  substance  revolving  in  circular  orbits  whose  radius 
is  practically  that  of  the  star,  we  find  displacements  of  the  two 
maxima  in  the  bands  corresponding  to  approximately  4-500  km. 
per  second,  which  would  be  equivalent  to  a  distance  of  about 
11-14  tenth-metres  between  the  two  maxima.  These  figures  are 
in  close  agreement  with  the  observations  which  showed  a  distance 
of  about  15  tenth-metres.  Hence  there  is  no  difficulty  in  com- 
prehending these  displacements,  and  therefore  also  the  enormous 
breadth  of  the  Nova  lines,  on  the  assumption  that  they  are  caused 
by  the  orbital  motions  of  particles  revolving  in  the  immediate 
neighbourhood  of  the  star's  surface. 

It  will  doubtless  be  noticed  that  the  theory  requires  no  assump- 
tion  as  regards   the   magnitude   of  the  original  relative  motion 


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536  Proceedings  of  Boyal  Society  of  Edinburgh,  [i 

of  star  and  nebula.  Certainly  the  two  objects  must  have  approached 
each  other,  otherwise  a  collision  would,  of  course,  have  been 
impossible.  But  the  rate  of  approach  is  here  a  question  of  no 
relevancy.  In  this  point  the  theory  may  be  clearly  distinguishes  1 
from  the  earlier  attempts,  in  which  two  or  more  bodies  were 
assumed  to  move  through  space  in  dififerent  directions,  with  speeds 
far  transcending  the  average  proper  motions  of  celestial  bodies. 

In  illustrating  these  views  on  the  physical  processes  connected 
with  the  phenomenon  of  temporary  stars,  I  have  discussed  some 
of  the  more  important  facts  brought  to  hght  by  the  observations 
of  Nova  Aurigae.  I  beg  now  to  enter  upon  a  brief  discussion  of 
the  observational  records  of  Nova  Persei.  Broadly  speaking,  the 
spectral  phenomena  noticed  in  this  specially  remarkable  new  star 
were  in  fair  accordance  with  those  of  its  predecessor  of  1892. 
There  are,  however,  some  peculiar  differences  in  the  structure  of 
the  bands  which  seem  to  require  an  explanation.  Most  noticeable 
among  these  is  the  fact  that  during  the  time  when  the  continuous 
spectrum  was  strong,  the  bright  band,  which  in  Nova  Aurigae  was 
strongly  displaced  towards  the  red  (fig.  6),  appeared  in  its  normal 
position  in  Nova  Persei.  Fortunately,  our  theory  is  sufficiently 
flexible  to  explain  this  peculiar  difference.  We  have  seen  before 
that  the  absorption-band  on  the  violet  side  is  caused  by  the  rapid 
development  of  an  expanding  atmosphere  at  the  moment  of  the 
collision.  Now,  obviously,  the  rate  of  expansion  will  depend  on 
the  temperature  developed  during  the  impact.  If,  therefore,  on 
account  of  greater  density  of  the  impinging  cloud,  we  suppose  the 
catastrophe  of  Nova  Persei  to  have  been  considerably  more  violent 
than  that  of  Nova  Aurigae — an  assumption  which  is  perhaps 
supported  by  the  relative  brightness  of  the  two  stars — then  the 
displacement  of  the  absorption-band  would  also  be  more  consider- 
able in  Nova  Persei.  On  the  other  hand,  if  the  masses  of  the  two 
stars  have  been  nearly  the  same,  the  two  maxima  of  the  bright 
bands  which  are  due  to  gravitational  effects  would  appear  in  the 
same  positions.  Thus,  while  the  curve  in  fig.  4  would  have  to  be 
extended  in  the  horizontal  direction  (fig.  9),  fig.  5  would  remain 
unaltered  (fig.  10).  By  combining  the  two  curves  in  the  same 
way  as  before  we  obtain  the  intensity-curve  in  fig  11.  Hence,  as 
the  total  effect  of  the  combined  radiations  and  absorptions,  we  find 


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1904-5.]    On  Prof,  Seeliger's  Theory  of  Temporary  Stars.       537 

in  this  case  a  broad  bright  line  with  two  maxima,  the  centre  of 
which  lies  at  the  normal  position,  and  a  hazy  absorption- band 
on  the  violet  side  of  the  bright  band.  We  notice  that  the 
assumption  of  a  more  energetic  expansion  at  once  explains  why 
the  bright  Perseus-lines  should  have  been  found  in  normal  positions, 
contrary  to  what  had  been  seen  in  the  former  fainter  Novae, 
where  these  bands  were  displaced  towards  the  red. 

The  fact  that  the  bright  bands  in  Nova  Persei  were  not  dis- 


placed  renders  it  difficult,  on  the  other  hand,  to  accept  either  the 
high-pressure  or  the  abnormal-refraction  theory.  According  to 
the  former,  we  must  expect,  under  all  circumstances,  displace- 
ment of  the  bright  bands  towards  the  red,  while  the  absorption- 
bands  should  appear  in  normal  positions.  The  observations  show 
that  in  Nova  Persei  just  the  opposite  phenomenon  occurred.  The 
a  priori  improbable  assumption  which  might  save  the  theory,  viz., 
that  the  star  may  have  possessed  an  enormous  proper  motion  towards 
us,  is  clearly  contradicted  by  other  observed  facts.  In  the  case  of 
the  refraction  theory  the  same  difficulty  is  experienced,  even  in 


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538  Proceedings  of  Boyai  Society  of  Editibv/rgh.  [i 

a  more  pronounced  form,  because  it  is  inconceivable  thai  any 
photospheric  light  can  have  been  abnormallj  refracted  on  wave- 
lengths shorter  than  the  normal.  The  whole  of  the  bright  band 
should  have  developed  on  the  less  refrangible  side.  This  is  clearly 
shown  by  the  theoretical  intensity-curve  in  Dr  Eberf  s  paper. 

I  have  mentioned  before  that  the  density  of  the  expanding 
atmosphere,  which  may  have  been  considerable  at  the  moment  of 
impact,  must  be  assumed  to  decrease  in  course  of  time^  and  I  have 
pointed  out  the  effect  which  this  must  have  on  the  appearance  of  the 
absorption-bands.     These  bands,  being  very  broad  and  hazy  at  first. 


qL^  12 


will  gradually  shrink  into  narrow  lines.  Suppose  fig.  1 2  to  represent 
a  central  section  through  the  star  and  its  atmosphere,  A  B  indicat- 
ing the  line  of  sight.  It  is  clear  that  atmospheric  particles,  at 
one  time  distributed  along  the  arc  A  A,  will,  by  radial  expansion, 
in  course  of  time  be  distributed  over  the  greater  arc  B'  B'.  Now 
all  the  particles  within  A  A  have  contributed  to  the  absorption- 
band  at  the  first  moment,  but  of  these  only  those  lying  within  the 
arc  B  B  will  absorb  the  photospheric  light  at  the  second  moment 
Hence  the  total  number  of  gaseous  molecules  passed  through  by 
photospheric  rays  in  the  direction  of  the  line  of  sight  will  be  less 
at  the  second  moment.     Now,  since  the  breadth  and  haziness  of 


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1904-5.]    On  Prof,  Seeliger's  Theory  of  Temporary  Stars.       539 

the  spectral  lines,  as  experiments  show,  uicrease  with  the  density, 
and  perhaps  also  with  the  temperature,  of  the  emitting  gas ;  and 
since  hoth  density  and  temperature  are  more  considerable  at  A 
than  at  B,  we  must  conclude  that  the  broad  and  hazy  absorption- 
band  is  gradually  reduced  to  a  narrow  line,  and  finally  fades  away 
altogether. 

This  peculiar  shrinkage  of  the  absorption-bands  has  indeed 
been  noticed  during  the  spectral  evolution  of  Nova  Persei.  But, 
curiously,  the  band  resolved  into  ttDO  lines  instead  of  one.  To 
explain  this  duplicity  we  have  to  make  a  further  assumption,  but 
fortunately  one  which  seems  not  improbable.  We  have  indeed 
only  to  suppose  that  in  this  special  case  the  dark  body  was  a  double 
«tar.  We  are  quite  familiar  with  double-star  systems  in  which 
one  of  the  components  is  invisible  (stars  of  the  Algol  type).  There 
is,  however,  no  reason  that  might  debar  us  from  assuming  double 
4tars  in  which  the  surfaces  of  both  components  have  cooled  below 
the  range  of  visibility.  Now,  in  such  a  case  it  is  very  unlikely 
that  both  stars  should  have  the  same  mass.  But  if  the  masses  are 
different,  then  the  gravitational  effects  on  the  cloud  particles  should 
also  be  different,  and  hence  the  heat-development  at  the  surges 
4uid  the  orbital  velocities  of  the  encircling  rings.  In  other  words, 
we  should  then  obtain  an  intensity-curve  of  the  bands  which  is 
found  by  combining  two  curves  of  the  shape  of  fig.  1 1  drawn  on 
<lifferent  scales.  The  resultant  curve  is  shown  in  fig.  13,  which  is 
indeed  typical  of  the  first  stage  of  development  in  Nova  Persei. 
The  following  stage  is  characterised  by  fig.  14,  where  the  broad 
hazy  absorption-band  has  already  been  resolved  into  two  compara- 
tively distinct  absorption-lines.  At  a  still  further  stage,  when  the 
density  of  the  expanding  atmosphere  has  become  extremely  small, 
the  absorption  has  practically  disappeared,  and  there  remains  only 
the  radiation  of  the  two  rings,  giving  rise  to  a  bright  band  with 
four  more  or  less  pronounced  maxima,  its  centre  lying  at  normal 
wave-length  (fig.  15).  All  these  conclusions  are  well  borne  out 
by  the  observed  facts. 

1  may  be  allowed  here  to  quote  the  folloMring  remark  from  a 
paper  by  Father  Sidgreaves  on  the  spectrum  of  Nova  Persei  in 
Monthly  NoticeSy  vol.  xii.  p.  141,  descriptive  of  the  gradual 
changes  in  the  dark  hydrogen-bands  : — *'  At  the  beginning  these 


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540  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh.  [i 

dark  lines  appeared  to  grow  in  strength  between  28th  February 
and  8th  March  ....  But  after  8th  March  their  decline  was  regu- 
lar and  uninterrupted ;  they  slowly  disappeared,  together  with  the 
bright  calcium  line  K.  On  12th  March  they  had  lost  their  centres 
and  appeared  as  well-defined  double  lines,  separated  by  a  thin  clear 
reversal.  The  more  refracted  components  were  much  the  weaker, 
and  were  the  first  to  disappear.  They  had  lost  much  on  the  16th, 
and  were  quite  extinct  on  the  20th,  when  the  red  side  components 


formed  the  series  of  sharp  thin  lines,  which  were  seen  for  the  last 
time  on  the  21st." 

It  appears  from  this  quotation  that  in  Nova  Persei  the  two 
absorption-lines  in  fig.  14  have  been  of  different  intensity,  the  one 
less  refracted  being  decidedly  the  stronger  of  the  two.  The  con- 
sequence was  that  this  line  outlived  its  more  refracted  feebler 
neighbour,  and  that  there  was  a  stage  when  the  intensity-curve 
of  the  bands  showed  the  structure  exhibited  in  fig.  16.  Suppose 
now  this  state  of  matters  to  have  lasted  for  some  time,  during 
which  the  continuous  spectrum  has  more  and  more  decreased  in 
brightness.     Under  these  circumstances  the  absorption-line  would 


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1904-5.]   On  Prof.  Seeliger's  Theory  of  Temporary  Stars,       541 

gradually  become  an  emissioD-line,  and,  as  such,  might  enhance  the 
intensity  of  the  violet  edge  of  the  emission-band.  We  should  then 
notice  those  peculiar  finger-post  structures  (fig.  17)  which  are 
so  prominent  features  in  the  later  spectrograms  of  the  Lick 
Observatory  (8eeZ».0.  Bulletin,  No.  8). 

There  is  a  good  reason  for  the  longer  persistence  of  the  less  re- 
fracted absorption-line.  The  more  rapidly  the  atmosphere  expands, 
the  more  quickly  will  the  absorption-band  thin  out  and  disappear. 
But  since  the  more  refracted  band  is  due  to  the  more  rapidly  ex- 
panding atmosphere,  we   may  naturally  infer  that  its  existence 


must  be  of  shorter  duration  than  that  of  its  neighbour,  which  is 
caused  by  the  less  expanding  gases. 

The  double-star  hypothesis,  which  apparently  explains  in  a 
satisfactory  way  some  of  the  peculiar  spectral  features  of  Nova 
Persei,  may  also  assist  us  in  understanding  more  fully  the  peculiar 
variability  of  the  star's  light,  specially  noticed  during  the  first 
stages  of  development.  In  an  earlier  paper  {Astronomische 
NachricJUen,  Nos.  3822-3)  I  have  attempted  to  show  that  the 
principal  features  of  this  variability  may  be  explained  by  a  rotation 
of  the  star  round  an  axis.  I  have  there  emphasised  the  fact  that 
by  the  more  or  less  one-sided  collision  the  star's  superficial  layers 
must  be  melted  unequally,  the  liquefaction  reaching  down  into 


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542  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh,  [i 

lower  levels  at  the  place  of  maximum  impact  A  central  sectioD 
through  the  star  immediately  after  the  catastrophe  may  therefore 
be  represented  by  No.  1  of  fig.  18,  the  ring  ABA'B'  showing  the 
incandescent  surface  layers,  and  A  being  the  locality  of  maximum 
impact.  After  the  collision  has  passed  over,  the  surface  begins  ta 
cool,  and  the  star  will  gradiially  arrive  at  the  stage  No.  2,  where 
the  surface  at  B  has  cooled  down  to  darkness,  while  the  surface 
at  A,  through  more  vigorous  conduction,  aud  perhaps  convection 
of  heat  from  the  interior,  may  still  be  in  a  state  of  incandescence* 
Some  time  afterwards  the  stage  No.  3  will  be  reached,  where  the 
incandescence  is  now  limited  to  a  small  lenticular  segment  at  A. 
In  this  way  the  star  would  gradually  pass  from  a  state  of  all- 
round  incandescence  to  total  obscurity.*    If,  now,  we  suppose  the 


\n^  uu 


star  to  possess  a  rotatory  motion,  by  which  the  points  A  and  B  are 
successively  brought  into  the  line  of  sight,  we  would  notice  the 
following  features  of  variability  :  At  No.  1  a  uniform  gradual 
decrease  of  brightness  ;  at  No.  2  the  same,  but  in  addition  a  periodic 
recurrence  of  pronounced  maxima  and  minima,  the  former  being 
much  extended  and  covering  the  greater  part  of  the  period,  the 
latter  being  indicated  by  abrupt  and  short  inflections  of  the  light 
curve ;  at  No.  3,  protracted  minima  covering  the  greater  part  of  the 
period  and  maxima  of  short  duration,  hence  the  reverse  of  No.  2. 
These  three  theoretical  light-curves  are  also  represented  in  fig.  18. 
They  are  in  fair  accordance  with  the  observed  phenomena. 

This  assumption  of  an  axial  rotation  advocated  in  my  former 
paper  is  by  no  means  improbable,  since  the  impacts  will  doubtless 
impart  a  certain  moment  of  momentum  to  the  star  nucleus.  But 
it  may  perhaps  seem  unnecessary  in   the  case  of  a  double  star, 


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1904-5.]   On  Prof,  Seeliger's  Tlieory  of  Tmvporary  Stars,      543 

where  the  observed  phenomena  may  as  well  be  explained  by  the 
revolution  of  the  two  stars  round  their  common  centre  of  gravity. 
In  the  introductory  remarks  to  this  paper  I  have  laid  consider- 
able stress  on  the  fact  that  the  observed  displacements  of  the 
spectral  lines  are  proportional  to  their  wave-lengths,  and  independ- 
ent of  the  chemical  nature  of  the  emitting  gas.  I  pointed  out  that 
this  remarkable  fact  supports  the  view  that  the  displacements  are 
due  to  motions  in  the  line  of  sight.  Indeed,  if  an  incandescent 
gaseous  body  is  moved  with  a  velocity  y,  its  lines  are  displaced  by 
an  amount  ±  d\^  so  that 

where  V  is  the  velocity  of  light  ( =  300,000  km.  per  second)  and  A. 
the  wave-length  of  the  line.  This  equation  holds  also  if  the  body 
consists  of  a  mixture  of  gases  moving  in  the  line  of  sight  with  a 
common  velocity  v.  Hence  any  line  of  the  spectrum  emitted  by 
these  various  gases  wiU  be  displaced  by  an  amount 

±d\  —  const.  X  A, 
t.e.  the  displacement  depends  solely  on  the  wave-length.  Professor 
Becker's  elaborate  measurements  confirm  this  statement  in  every 
respect.  I  should  like  here  to  supplement  his  important  con- 
clusions, which  bear  out  so  admirably  the  theoretical  results  of 
this  communication,  by  a  few  similar  measurements  published  by 
Messrs  Campbell  and  Wright  in  the  8th  Bulletin  of  the  Lick 
Observatory.  I  begin  with  the  displacements  of  the  absorption- 
bands.  The  following  table  contains  in  the  first  column  the  lines 
measured  and  the  elements  to  which  they  belong,  in  the  second 
and  third  columns  the  observed  and  computed  displacements 
towards  the  violet.  The  values  of  the  third  column  have  been 
computed  from  the  formula  : — 

-ciA.  =  00046xX 

Displacement 


g     i  Calcium     | 


Observed.     Computed. 
-  17  t.m.  -  18 


16  -18 

H8  I                    (    -19  -19 

Hy  \  Hydrogen  <     -  19  -  19 

HJ8)                    (    -24  -22 

D        Sodium          -27  -27 


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544  Proceedings  of  Boyal  Society  of  Edinburgh.         [sbss. 

The  agreement  between  observation  and  computation  is  so  ex- 
traordinary that  the  observers  felt  justified  to  remark :  "  There 
is,  then,  no  evidence  that  the  position  of  the  band  is  affected  by 
other  considerations  than  that  of  wave-length." 

A  similar  result  is  obtained  from  the  investigation  of  the 
bright  bands.  According  to  theory,  the  enormous  width  of  these 
bands,  as  well  as  the  appearance  of  maxima  within  them,  are  also 
to  be  explained  by  motions  of  gaseous  matter  in  the  line  of  sight 
Hence  we  conclude  that  the  width  and  the  displacements  of  corre- 
sponding maxima  should  be  linear  functions  of  the  wave-lengths, 
but  independent  of  the  chemical  nature  of  the  emitting  substances. 
The  correctness  of  this  conclusion  is  shown  in  the  following  table. 
Here  the  measurements  given  in  the  second  column  refer  to  the  chief 
(violet)  maximum  of  the  bright  bands,  while  the  displacements  iu 
the  third  column  have  been  computed  from  the  formula 

-(fX  =  0-00212xX. 

The  fourth  column  contains  the  observed  widths  of  the  bright 
bands.  Naturally  these  measurements  are  far  less  reliable,  but 
neverthelejis  the  alleged  proportionality  to  the  wave-length  is  quite 
evident. 

Displacement  of  chief  maximum 
of  bright  bands 


Wave-lengtli. 

Obs. 

Comp. 

Width, 

3868-9  t.m. 

-  8-7  t.m. 

-  8-2  t.m. 

31 

3967-6 

-8  6 

-8-4 

31 

4101-9  H 

-8-2 

-8-7 

36 

4340-6  H 

-9-4 

-9-1 

4363-3  Neb. 

-9-7 

-9-2 

33 

4471-6  He 

-9-6 

-9-5 

34 

4643- 

-11 

-10 

... 

4685-9  Neb. 

-10 

-10 

4713-2  He 

-10 

-10 

4861-5  H 

-9 

-10 

33 

4959-0  Neb. 

-11 

-11 

34 

5007-0  Neb 

-11 

-11 

38 

5752-    Neb. 

-11 

-12 

43 

5875-9  He 

-13 

-13 

40 

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1904-5.]   On  Prof,  Seeliger^s  Theory  of  Temporai-y  Stars.       545 

I  cannot  believe  that  these>  results,  combined  with  the  cor- 
roborating evidence  of  Professor  Becker's  observations,  leave  any 
doubt  as  to  the  fact  that  the  displacements  in  the  spectra  of  new 
stars  depend  exclusively  on  the  wave-length,  and  are  not  caused 
by  agencies  which  depend  on  the  atomic  structure  of  the  emitting 
substances.  This  fact  must  be  considered  as  the  touch-stone 
of  theories  on  temporary  stars;  so  much  so,  indeed,  that  we 
may  at  once  dismiss  any  explanation,  however  plausible  in  other 
respects,  which  is  not  in  entire  accordance  with  it. 

We  are  now  in  a  position  to  form,  step  by  step,  a  mental  picture 
of  the  evolution  of  a  new  star,  and  to  compare  our  deductive 
conclusions  with  the  observed  facts.  The  more  important  events 
in  the  star's  history  as  a  radiating  body  may  be  thus  summarised  : — 

(1)  The  immediate  consequence  of  the  impact  between  star  and 
cosmic  cloud  is  a  more  or  less  one-sided  incandescence  of  the  star's 
surface,  causing  a  purely  continuous  spectrum.  This  stage  was 
noticed  here  in  Edinburgh  about  sixteen  hours  after  the  outburst. 

(2)  In  consequence  of  the  sudden  and  enormous  heating  a  gaseous 
envelope  is  formed,  which  expands  very  rapidly  in  radial  directions. 
The  velocity  of  expansion  may  be  assumed  to  exceed  that  noticed 
in  solar  eruptions.  The  expanding  gases  now  begin  to  influence 
the  spectrum.  At  first  absorption  predominates,  and  is  shown  by 
broad  absorption-lines,  displaced  towards  the  more  refrangible  side. 
The  lines  must  be  broad  and  hazy,  on  account  of  the  density  and 
the  divergent  motions  of  the  gases.  This  stage  was  observed 
here  in  Edinburgh  about  twenty  hours  after  the  discovery,  when 
the  visual  spectrum  was  strongly  continuous,  but  interrupted  at 
various  places  by  faint  broad  absorption-bands.  As  the  density 
must  have  decreased  while  the  atmosphere  was  more  and  more 
expanding,  the  broad  and  hazy  absorption-bands  in  course  of 
time  reduced  to  sharp  dark  lines,  which  ultimately  thinned  out 
and  faded  away.  This  peculiar  feature,  too,  has  been  noticed  by 
observers  (see  F.  Sidgreaves'  note  quoted  above).  At  the  same 
time  the  star's  atmosphere  becoming  more  extensive,  its  radiation 
outside  the  star's  disc  grows  more  and  more  prominent,  giving  rise 
to  broad  emission-bands  in  normal  positions.  Hence,  after  a  time, 
the  spectrum  shows  bright  bands,  bordered  on  their  violet  edges 
by    absorption-bands.      This   constitutes    the    typical    new    star 

PROC.  ROY.  SOC.  EDIN. — VOL.   XXV.  35 


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546  Proceedings  of  Rayed  Soctety  of  Edinburgh.  [§■». 

spectrum.  It  may  be  specially  noticed  that,  from  the  theoretical 
point  of  view,  the  absorption-line  must  under  aU  circunutanees  be 
on  the  violet  side  of  the  emission-line. 

(3)  The  expanding  atmosphere,  formed  from  the  volatilised  sub- 
stances of  the  star  matter,  and  being  at  temperatures  comparable  to 
those  prevalent  in  star-atmospheres,  will  spectroscopically  resemble 
the  chromosphere.  This  conclusion  is  confirmed  by  the  table  on 
pp.  286-7  of  Scheiner-Frost's  Spectroscopy^  in  which  a  comparison 
is  made  between  the  lines  seen  in  Nova  Aurigae  and  those  most 
frequently  and  most  intensely  noticed  in  the  solar  chromosphere. 

(4)  Besides  the  expanding  atmosphere,  account  must  be  taken 
of  the  revolving  ring  of  nebular  matter  which,  after  the  collision, 
has  been  brought  under  the  permanent  gravitational  sway  of  the 
star.  The  presence  of  motions  of  this  character  explains  uot  only 
the  enormous  width  of  the  bright  bands,  but  also  the  appearance 
of  symmetrically  grouped  maxima  within  them.  We  are  further 
enabled  to  understand  the  strong  displacement  of  the  bright  band 
towards  the  red  in  one  case  (Nova  Aurigae),  and  the  absence  of 
such  a  shift  in  another  (Nova  Persei). 

(5)  When  once  this  gyrating  ring  of  matter  has  been  established, 
further  direct  impact  of  meteoric  matter  upon  the  star  will  be  im- 
peded, since  a  considerable  number  of  nebular  particles  may  collide 
already  inside  the  ring  without  reaching  the  surface  of  the  star. 
This  enhances,  on  the  one  hand,  the  luminosity  of  the  ring,  and 
reduces,  on  the  other  hand,  the  incandescence  of  the  nucleus. 
Consequently  we  notice  a  decrease  of  the  continuous  spectrum 
coupled  with  an  increase  of  those  gaseous  radiations  which  are  caused 
by  the  incandescence  or  luminosity  of  the  gyrating  nebular  matter. 
The  expanding  atmosphere  having  gradually  faded  away,  the 
chromospheric  spectrum  has  also  disappeared,  and  has  been  super- 
seded by  those  lines  which  are  peculiar  to  the  spectrum  of  gaseous 
nebulee.*  This  is,  briefly,  the  course  of  events  which  theory  would 
lead  us  to  expect.  At  the  same  time,  it  is  also  in  many  respects  the 
sequence  of  phenomena  shown  by  observation.  The  gradual  dis- 
appearance of  the  continuous  spectrum  together  with  the  lines 
which  belong  to  the  chromospheric  radiations,  and  the  simultaneous 
intensification    of    the  nebular   lines, — the   peculiar    process    of 

*  See  note  at  end  of  paper. 


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1904-5.]    On  Prof,  Seeliger's  Theory  of  Temporary  Stars.       547 

"  backwardation,"  as  Sir  Norman  Lockyer  appropriately  calls  it, 
because  it  reveals  a  sequence  of  phenomena  exactly  opposite  to 
what  we  comprehend  as  the  natural  evolution  of  a  cosmic  body, — 
are  indeed  features  well  known  to  students  of  this  problem. 

We  notice,  then;  that  Seeliger's  ingenious  hypothesis  can  be  made 
to  respond  to  a  number  of  observed  facts  if  the  circumstances  are 
duly  considered  under  which  the  supposed  collision  between  a  dark 
body  and  a  cosmic  cloud  may  occur.  An  effort  has  been  made 
in  this  communication  to  emphasise  the  important  r6le  played  by 
the  star's  gravitational  force,  and  to.  show  that  the  motions  of 
incandescent  matter  generated  by  the  star's  attraction  are  probably 
sufficient,  from  a  qualitative  as  well  as  a  quantitative  point  of  view, 
to  explain  the  peculiarities  of  the  Nova  spectrum,  and  also  to 
account  for  the  extraordinary  process  of  evolution  noticed  in 
temporary  stars. 

One  of  the  conclusions  reached  in  this  paper  is  that,  as  an  effect 
of  one-sided  collision,  the  cosmic  body  may  become  surrounded 
by  a  revolving  ring  of  nebular  matter.  Before  the  collision, 
neither  the  star  nor  the  nebula  were  supposed  to  possess  a  rotational 
momentum.  But  the  mere  fact  of  a  meteoric  swarm  impinging  upon 
the  star  leads  to  the  conclusion  that  a  permanent  ring  of  meteoric 
matter  may  be  formed,  the  constituents  of  which  revolve  with 
orbital  velocities  round  the  star  nucleus.  May  not  this  conclusion 
perhaps  assist  us  in  explaining  the  origin  of  the  rotation  of  our 
own  solar  system  1  It  is  well  known  that  Laplace,  in  his 
celebrated  hypothesis,  assumed  rotation  as  a  pre-existing  quality 
of  the  solar  nebula.  He  clearly  recognised,  what  had  escaped  the 
less  mathematical  genius  of  Kant,  that  rotation  could  not  have 
been  generated  by  the  internal  motions  of  the  contracting  matter ; 
that  only  an  external  agency  could  have  introduced  it  into  our 
system.  Laplace  made  no  attempt  to  define  this  agency  :  he  boldly 
assumed  its  primeval  operation,  and  started  his  hypothesis  from 
the  moment  when  rotation  had  been  impressed  upon  the  vast 
cosmic  cloud  from  which  our  present  system  has  gradually  been 
formed.  No  doubt,  our  attempts  to  grasp  the  evolution  of  the 
natural  world  can  only  begin  from  a  certain  stage  ;  unconceivable 
creation  stands  at  the  beginning  of  the  cosmos.  Laplace's  assump- 
tion of  original  rotation  is  therefore  certainly  justified,  and  must  be 


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548  Proceedings  of  Roycd  Society  of  Edinburgh.  [sess. 

preferred  to  the  Kantian  attempt  to  explain  this  quality  of  solar 
matter  from  an  untenable  mathematical  and  physical  point  of  view. 
If  the  Laplaceian  hypothesis  would  otherwise  satisfactorily  account 
for  the  development  of  our  system,  we  might  well  grant  his  assiirop- 
tion  that  rotation  was  due  to  an  external  impulse  beyond  the 
grasp  of  our  intelligence.  But  a  recent  criticism  of  the  hypothesis 
has  shown  that  our  minds  cannot  readily  accept  all  the  con- 
clusions drawn  in  this  great  poem  of  cosmic  evolution.  In  a  paper 
contributed  to  the  Astrophysical  Journal^  vol.  xi.,  Mr  Moulton, 
a  mathematical  astronomer  of  high  repute,  attacks  the  hypothesis 
from  various  mathematical  and  physical  points  of  view.  His 
negative  conclusions  appear  in  many  respects  suflficiently  sound 
and  vigorous  to  convey  the  impression  that  the  evolution  of 
our  system  must  have  differed  very  largely  from  the  ideal  picture 
of  Laplace.  Since  a  brief  review  of  ISIr  Moulton's  arguments 
seems  necessary  in  order  to  understand  more  clearly  the  bearing 
of  our  own  hypothesis  upon  solar  evolution,  I  beg  to  quote 
a  few  passages  from  his  work  which  may  give  an  idea  of  the 
nature  and  extent  of  the  difficulties  encountered  in  the  nebular 
hypothesis. 

(P.  104.)  "  The  methods  of  testing  the  theory  will  be  divided 
into  three  categories : — (i.)  Comparison  of  observed  phenomena 
with  those  which  result  from  the  expressed  or  implied  conditions 
maintained  by  the  hjrpothesis  ;  (ii.)  Answers  to  the  question 
whether  the  supposed  initial  conditions  could  have  developed  into 
the  existing  system ;  (iii.)  Comparison  of  those  properties  of  the 
supposed  initial  system  with  the  one  now  existing,  which  are 
invariant  under  all  changes  resulting  from  the  action  of  internal 
forces." 

(P.  129.)  "Under  the  methods  of  the  first  category  certain 
phenomena  are  enumerated  which  contradict  the  hypothesis  so 
flatly  that  candid  minds  must  admit  that  its  validity  in  the  form 
considered  is  open  to  serious  question.  In  less  exact  sciences 
such  objections  would  overthrow  a  theory  or  lead  to  its  reconstruc- 
tion. The  objections  are,  that  the  planes  of  the  planets'  orbits 
present  considerable  deviations,  while  four  satellites  revolve  in 
planes  making  practically  right  angles  with  the  average  of  the 
system ;  that  the  distribution  of  mass  in  the  planets  is  unaccount- 


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1904-5.]    On  Prof,  Seeliger's  Theory  of  Tempo7*ary  Stars.       549 

ably  and  suspiciously  irregular ;  and  that  there  is  an  unexplainable 
anomaly  in  the  motion  of  the  inner  ring  of  Saturn. 

*'  Under  the  methods  of  the  second  category,  it  is  shown  that 
the  development  of  a  system  of  planets  and  satellites  from  an 
extended  nebula  is  by  no  means  a  simple  matter,  and  that  in  the 
system  under  consideration  the  conclusions  which  it  was  possible 
to  make  were  invariably  adverse  to  the  theory.  In  subjects  where 
perfectly  rigorous  mathematical  processes  cannot  be  employed, 
such  a  uniform  agreement  of  conclusions,  when  so  various  methods 
of  attack  are  employed,  is  sufficient  to  establish  a  proposition. 
The  objections  are,  that  the  lighter  elements  would  have  escaped  ; 
that  matter  would  have  been  left  off  continually,  instead  of  in  rings 
at  rare  intervals ;  that  if  a  ring  were  all  contracted  into  a  planet 
except  an  infinitesimal  remainder  distributed  in  its  path,  the 
process  of  aggregation  could  not  complete  itself ;  that  the  gravita- 
tion between  the  masses  occurring  in  the  rare  media  would  be  so 
feeble  that  they  would  seldom  come  in  contact,  and  that  Roche's 
limit  and  a  similar  new  criterion  show  that  fluid  masses  of  the 
density  which  must  have  existed  would  be  disintegrated  by  the 
disturbing  action  of  the  sun. 

"  The  one  objection  which  is  advanced  in  the  methods  of  the 
third  category  *  is  of  great  simplicity,  and  leads  to  certain  conclu- 
sions. It  is  of  such  a  character,  and  the  numerical  discrepancies 
are  so  great,  that  it  seems  to  render  the  nebular  hypothesis,  in  the 
simple  form  in  which  it  has  usually  been  accepted,  absolutely 
untenable,   unless    some   fundamental   postulates,  now   generally 

*  (P.  126.)  **  It  is  known  from  the  elementary  principles  of  dynamics  that 
the  moment  of  momentum  of  a  system  which  is  subject  to  no  external  forces 
is  constant."  Mr  Moulton  demonstrates,  however,  that  when  the  solar 
nebula  extended  to  Neptune's  orbit,  the  moment  of  momentum  was  32*176, 
while  in  the  system  at  present  it  is  only  0'151.  Hence,  ''instead  of  being  a 
constant,  the  moment  of  momentum  is  found  to  vary  in  a  remarkable 
manner.  ...  It  follows  from  these  figures  that  if  the  mass  of  the  solar 
system  filled  a  spheroid  exten«ling  to  Neptune's  orbit,  and  rotated  with  a 
velocity  sufficient  to  make  its  moment  of  momentum  equal  to  that  of  the 
present  system,  and  if  it  then  contracted  ....  the  centrifugal  force  would 
not  equal  the  centripetal  until  it  had  shrunk  far  within  Mercury's  orbit. 
Such  an  enormous  difference  cannot  be  ascribed  to  uncertainties  in  the  law 
of  density,  or  to  the  approximations  in  the  mechanical  quadratures ;  but  it 
points  to  a  mode  of  development  quite  different  from,  and  much  more  com- 
plicated than,  that  postulated  in  the  nebular  theory  under  discussion." 


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550  Proceedings  of  Rayed  Society  of  Ediiibwryh,  \^r^^. 

accepted,  are  radically  erroneous.  It  seems  a  necessary  inference  from 
the  results  of  tlio  discussion  that  the  solar  nebula  was  heterogeneous 
to  a  degree  not  lieretofore  considered  as  being  probable.  .  .  ." 

Now,  it  seems  to  me  that  some  of  these  difficulties  arc  avoided 
if  we  ascribe  the  formation  of  the  planets  to  the  rotating  ring 
engendered  by  the  collision  between  the  solar  body  and  a 
dense  cosmic  cloud.  I  would  still  assume  the  original  solar  body 
to  have  been  formed  from  a  nebula  by  the  process  of  contraction. 
But  this  nebula  had  no  inherent  property  of  rotation.  Conse- 
quently the  resulting  liquid  body  had  neither  a  tendency  to 
rotate  nor  was  it  surrounded  by  a  revolving  planetary  system. 
Now  let  us  suppose  this  body,  on  its  journey  through  space,  to 
approach  a  cosmic  cloud  of  considerable  density.  As  a  consequence 
of  the  collision,  which  in  all  probability  will  be  one-sided,  not  only 
a  revolving  ring  of  matter  will  become  permanently  attacheil  to 
the  star,  but  also  those  particles  which  impinge  upon  the  IkkIv 
will  impart  a  rotation  to  it  in  the  same  direction  as  that  of  the 
ring.  The  result  is  a  slowly  rotating  central  nucleus  surrounded 
by  a  ring  of  quickly  revolving  matter.  I  have  pointed  out  that 
the  orbits  of  the  ring  particles,  immediately  after  the  catastrophe, 
have  all  possible  eccentricities  ranging  between  zero  and  unity, 
those  near  the  star  describing  circles,  those  farther  removed 
elongated  ellipses.  But  this  aspect  will  gradually  change.  On 
each  return  to  periastron  the  particles  will  encounter  fresh  colli- 
sions, by  which  the  major  axes  and  the  eccentricities  of  their 
orbits  are  lessened,  the  ring  thereby  becoming  denser,  and  at  the 
same  time  more  and  more  circular.  For  we  must  keep  in  mind 
that,  in  consequence  of  the  enormous  heat  communicated  to  the 
star  by  the  impacts,  there  will  be  a  dense  and  extensive  atmosphere 
around  it,  through  which  the  ring  particles  have  to  force  their  way 
every  time  they  return  to  periastron.  The  tendency  would  there- 
fore be  to  establish  a  circular  ring.  The  density  of  matter  within 
this  ring  may  be  quite  heterogeneous.  It  is  indeed  to  be  expected 
that  matter  may  be  more  concentrated  in  some  of  its  parts  than  in 
others.  From  the  beginning  distinct  nuclei  may  be  present, 
around  which  matter  is  more  or  less  densely  grouped.  These 
nuclei  would  form  centres  of  attraction,  and,  as  such,  would  mark 
the  initial  steps   towards   the  formation  of  planets.     From    this 


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1904-5.]   On  Prof,  Seeliger's  Theory  of  Temporal^  Stars,       551 

point  of  view,  however  crude  it  may  appear  in  its  present  form,* 
the  difficulties  of  Mr  Moulton's  first  and  third  category  are  at  once 
removed,  and  those  of  the  second  certainly  reduced.  We  under- 
stand better  why  the  distribution  of  matter  in  the  solar  system 
should  be  so  heterogeneous,  and  why  there  is  not  that  constancy 
of  the  moment  of  momentum  which  would  have  to  be  expected  if 
the  Laplaceian  hypothesis  were  correct.  Besides,  we  are  here  for 
the  first  time  confronted  with  a  possible  explanation  of  how 
rotation  may  have  been  introduced  into  the  solar  system.  In  the 
problem  of  cosmic  evolution,  this  question  has  always  proved  an 
insurmountable  difficulty  to  those  philosophers  who  attempted  to 
trace  the  natural  development  of  our  world  from  the  primordial 
chaos.  That  matter  endowed  with  gravitational  force  may  have 
contracted  from  nebulse  into  spherical  bodies,  and  that  these  latter 
may  have  originally  been  impressed  with  chance  motions  through 
space — such  conclusions  are  quite  compatible  with  our  conception 
of  the  chaos  where  chance  has  ruled  supreme.  But  how,  from  this 
anarchy  of  forces  and  directions,  a  system  of  cosmic  bodies  could 
have  been  moulded,  in  which  one  particular  tendency  of  motion 
prevails  to  the  exclusion  of  all  others — this  question  has  so  far  been 
considered  as  pertaining  to  the  domain  of  metaphysics  rather  than 
of  natural  philosophy.  The  difficulty  seems  now  to  be  somewhat 
lessened,  inasmuch  as  it  can  be  shown  that  the  chance  approach  of 
a  star  towards  a  nebular  or  meteoric  agglomeration  of  matter  may 
entail  the  formation  of  a  rotating  ring  surrounding  the  star,  and  also 
the  impression  of  an  equally  directed  moment  of  momentum  upon 
the  body  itself.  It  seems  not  unlikely,  therefore,  that  in  the  pheno- 
menon of  a  new  star  we  notice  the  initial  stage  of  the  fabric  of  a 
solar  system,  and  that.  Nature  presents  here  to  our  eyes — although, 
perhaps,  on  a  less  gigantic  scale — a  sequence  of  events  which  had 
taken  place  in  our  own  system  in  the  remote  past. 

Note  added  on  Slst  January  1905. — It  has  been  pointed  out  to 
me  that  I  do  not  explain  the  noteworthy  fact  that  the  nebular 
lines  have  appeared  a  considerable  time  after  the  outburst,  and 
were  not  present  during  the  initial  stages,  whereas  the  theory 
demands  the  existence  of  nebular  matter  round  the  star  from  the 
•  See  my  paper,  **  Some  Suggestions  on  the  Nebular  Hypothesis." 


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552  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh,  [sesb. 

very  beginning  of  the  catastrophe.  I  admit  that  my  exposition 
contains  no  direct  allusion  to  this  point,  which,  however,  seemed  to 
me  too  obvious  to  require  a  special  explanation.  We  must  grant, 
I  tlnnk  without  hesitation,  that  the  appearance  of  the  nebular 
spectrum  presupposes  not  only  the  presence  of  nebulous  matter, 
but  also  those  special  conditions  of  temperature  under  which 
alone  this  matter  can  emit  the  peculiar  lines  of  gaseous  nebulae. 
Nobody  denies  now  that  the  materials  of  which  the  stars  are 
composed  once  formed  nebular  clouds,  and  that  under  such  condi- 
tions they  emitted  the  typical  nebular  spectrum,  of  which  at 
present,  with  a  few  exceptions,  we  see  no  traces  in  their  atmo- 
spheres. It  is  one  of  the  great  achievements  of  modern  spectroscopy 
to  have  shown  that  the  same  substance  emits  essentially  different 
spectra  under  different  conditions  (e,g.  the  spectrum  of  hydrogen 
at  low  and  high  tem{>erature).  Hence  we  are  clearly  not  permitted 
to  think  that  nebular  matter — an  infinitely  more  complex  structure 
than  the  simple  hydrogen  atom — will  betray  its  existence  by  one 
and  the  same  typical  spectrum  under  all  circumstances.  ITie 
spectrum  of  nebular  matter  at  a  high  temperature  will  most  likely 
be  essentially  different  from  that  at  a  low  temperature.  If  our 
ideas  of  cosmic  evolution  be  correct,  the  former  must  resemble 
that  of  incandescent  cosmic  matter  in  the  star  atmospheres,  i.e. 
it  must  be  chromospheric,  while  the  latter  is  typical  of  the  condi- 
tions in  nebulae  which  our  modern  views  suppose  to  be  at  very 
low  temperatures,  and  luminous  rather  than  incandescent.  Doubt- 
less the  nebular  matter  round  a  temporary  star  is  under  the  former 
conditions  immediately  after  the  outburst.  It  is  only  after  the 
subsidence  of  impacts  that  the  star  and  the  nebulous  matter  round 
it  gradually  cool  down  and  approach  those  conditions  of  low 
temperature  which  finally  lead  to  the  appearance  of  the  typical 
nebular  spectrum.  In  the  ordinary  process  of  evolution,  therefore, 
cosmic  matter  begins  its  spectroscopic  existence  by  showing  the 
low  temperature  nebular  spectnmi,  and  thence  develops  its  high 
temperature  or  chromospheric  character ;  in  temporary  stars  we 
notice  the  inverse  process — so  to  speak,  a  negative  evolution. 
These  remarks  will  suffice  to  explain  why  the  nebular  spectrum 
should  be  absent  at  first,  and  should  gradually  develop  with  the 
cooling  of  the  star. 

{Issued  separcUely  April  15,  1905.) 


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1904-6.]         Dr  J.  Halm  on  the  Nehdar  Hypothesis.  553 


Some  Suggestions  on  the  Nebular  Hypothesis. 
By  J.  Halm,  Ph.D. 

(MS.  received  March  6,  1905.     Read  March  20,  1905.) 

The  hypothesis  of  Laplace  on  the  genesis  of  the  solar  system 
from  an  extensive  nebula  presents  difficulties  of  so  serious  a 
character  that  important  modifications  appear  to  be  required  in 
order  to  make  it  conformable  with  the  laws  of  dynamics.  The 
objection  most  frequently  brought  forward  refers  to  the  mode  in 
which  Laplace  assumes  the  separation  of  the  planets  from  the 
contracting  nebula  to  have  taken  place.  It  is  urged  that  the 
intermittent  shedding-oflf  of  rings  is  a  somewhat  unintelligible 
process  considering  the  physical  constitution  of  the  nebula ;  that 
we  should  rather  expect  a  contintu>u8  separation  of  particles  at  the 
equator,  where  the  centripetal  force  is  overbalanced  by  the  centri- 
fugal force,  and  hence  that  no  fissure  of  a  large  ring  from  the 
main  bulk  is  to  be  expected.  Much  hope  is  now  entertained  that 
the  brilliant  researches  of  M.  Poincar^  and  Professor  Darwin  on  the 
form  of  equilibrium  of  rotating  fluids  may  eventually  remove  this 
difficulty,  and  teach  us  something  about  the  evolution  of  the  solar 
fluid  when  its  axial  rotation  was  quickening  through  contraction. 
It  is  conceivable  that  even  in  a  heterogeneous  body,  as  the  solar 
nebula  doubtless  was,  a  course  of  events  might  take  place  which 
would  lead  from  the  sphere  through  the  series  of  spheroids 
and  Jacobi  ellipsoids  to  Poincare^s  well-known  pear-shape;  and 
ultimately,  by  increasing  constriction  of  the  waist  of  the  pear,  to 
the  division  of  the  body  into  two  or  more.  But  even  granting 
such  a  possibility,  some  difficulty  is  felt  in  approaching  an 
explanation  of  solar  evolution  from  this  groove  of  thought, 
because,  as  Mr  Moulton  has  pointed  out,  the  solar  nebula  has  not 
fulfilled  the  law  of  constant  moment  of  momentum.  There 
can  be  no  doubt  that  the  present  sum  of  rotary  moments  is 
considerably  less   than  it  should  be   if  the   planets   had  been 


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554  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh,  [sns. 

formed  by  the  contraction  of  a  rotating  nebula.  But  the  re- 
duction of  rotary  momentum  in  a  system  cannot  be  explained 
in  absence  of  external  forces ;  and  since  such  forces,  acting  with 
sufficient  power,  cannot  be  claimed,  we  must  conclude  that  the 
formation  of  the  planets  must  have  been  due  to  a  cause  different 
from  that  assumed  by  Laplace.  In  the  following  communication, 
which  is  of  a  merely  suggestive  character  and  is  based  on  some 
conclusions  arrived  at  in  my  previous  paper  on  temporary  stars, 
I  have  tried  to  avoid  this  difficulty  by  proposing  a  possible 
mode  of  development,  in  some  respects  different  from  Laplace's 
view,  but  ultimately  leading  to  the  same  conclusions.  I  assume 
that  the  conditions  necessary  for  the  formation  of  planets  were 
introduced  after  the  solar  body  had  condensed  from  a  lum-rotating 
nebula  into  a  spherical  body  of  a  diameter  probably  less  than  the 
distance  of  Mercury.  I  suppose  that  at  this  stage  the  solar  body, 
on  its  course  through  space,  had  approached  a  cosmic  cloud  of 
meteoric  constitution,  and  had  passed  through  a  series  of  cTents 
such  as  have  been  described  in  my  previous  paper,  leading — as 
was  shown  there — to  the  formation  of  a  ring  of  meteors  rotating 
with  orbital  velocities  round  the  solar  nucleus.  The  question  to 
be  discussed  is  whether  we  may  explain  the  formation  of  planets 
and  their  rotation  round  an  axis  simply  from  the  heterogeneity  of 
the  ring  and  the  mutual  perturbing  action  of  its  constituents. 
The  conclusion,  although  reached  by  somewhat  general  and  ad- 
mittedly crude  considerations,  seems  yet  to  be  that  these  perturba- 
tions would  introduce  motions  in  the  particles  round  a  point  of  the 
ring  where  matter  was  denser  than  on  the  average,  such  as  would 
impart  a  rotation  to  the  condensing  planet  in  the  required  direction. 
There  seems  also  reason  to  suppose  that  Professor  Darwin's  in- 
genious conception  of  fluid-pressure  in  a  meteoric  swarm  would 
sufficiently  account  for  a  gradual  evacuation  of  the  ring  by  the 
gravitational  action  of  the  planets.  Lastly,  I  propose  to  show 
that  the  suggested  view  offers  an  explanation  of  the  origin  of 
comets  compatible  with  observed  facts,  and  may  thus  perhaps 
supplement  the  nebular  hypothesis  with  regard  to  a  point  as  to 
which  Laplace's  theory  gives  no  satisfactory  account. 

In  my  paper,  "On  Professor  Seeliger's  Theory  of  Temporary 
Stars,"  an  attempt  was  formerly  made  to  explain  the  genesis  of 


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1904-5.]         Dr  J.  Halm  071  the  Nebular  Hypothesis.  555 

rotation  in  the  solar  system  by  one-sided  impacts  of  a  meteoric 
cloud  upon  the  solar  nucleus.  We  must  admit,  on  dynamical 
grounds,  that  the  partial  destruction  of  the  orbital  velocities  of  the 
meteors  involves  the  generation  of  closed  orbits  round  the  star  as 
focus,  and  also  that  one-sidedness  of  the  impacts  leads  to  the  pre- 
ponderance of  a  distinct  direction  of  rotation.  It  may,  however, 
seem  difficult  at  first  sight  to  understand  how  a  system,  in  which 
the  outer  orbits  must  have  possessed  large  eccentricities,  should 
have  developed  into  one  in  which  all  the  bodies  move  now  sensibly 
in  circles.  But  on  closer  examination  this  difficulty  seems  to  be 
lessened.  Professor  Darwin,  in  his  essay  on  "The  Mechanical 
Conditions  of  a  Swarm  of  Meteorites  and  on  Theories  of  Cos- 
mogony," in  the  Transactions  and  Proceedings  of  the  Royal  Society 
for  1888,  has  proposed  an  ingenious  thermodynamical  theory  of 
meteoric  matter  based  on  the  laws  of  the  kinetic  theory  as 
ordinarily  applied  to  gases.  One  point  of  his  investigation  refers 
to  the  viscosity  of  such  an  agglomeration  of  meteoric  substance, 
which  he  finds  to  be  remarkably  great.  His  conclusion  suggests 
that  friction  must  have  largely  influenced  the  orbital  motions  of 
the  ring-particles.  The  passage  in  Professor  Darwin's  paper 
which  has  a  direct  bearing  on  this  point  may  here  be  quoted : — 

"  The  very  essence  of  the  nebular  hypothesis  is  the  conception 
of  fluid-pressure,  since  without  it  the  idea  of  a  figure  of  equilibrium 
becomes  inapplicable.  Now,  at  first  sight,  the  meteoric  condition 
of  matter  seems  absolutely  inconsistent  with  a  fluid-pressure 
exercised  by  one  part  of  the  system  on  another.  We  thus  seem 
driven  either  to  the  absolute  rejection  of  the  nebular  hypothesis, 
or  to  deny  that  the  meteoric  condition  was  the  immediate  ante- 
cedent of  the  sun  and  the  planets.  The  object  of  this  paper  \Proc 
Roy,  SoCy  vol.  45,  p.  4]  is  to  point  out  that  by  a  certain  interpreta- 
tion of  the  meteoric  theory  we  may  obtain  a  reconciliation  of  these 
two  orders  of  ideas,  and  may  hold  that  the  origin  of  stellar  and 
planetary  systems  is  meteoric,  whilst  retaining  the  conception  of 
fluid-pressure.  According  to  the  kinetic  theory  of  gases^  fluid- 
pressure  is  the  average  result  of  the  impacts  of  molecules.  If  we 
imagine  the  molecules  magnified  until  of  the  size  of  meteorites, 
their  impacts  will  stiU,  on  a  coarser  scale,  give  a  quasi-fluid- 
pressure.     I  suggest,  then,  that  the  fluid-pressure  essential  to  the 


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556  Proceedings  of  Eoyal  Society  of  Edinburgh,  [j 

nebular  hypothesis  is  in  fact  the  resultant  of  countless  impacts  of 
meteorites." 

In  applying  this  idea  of  a  kinetic  theory  of  meteors  to  the 
present  problem,  we  have  to  consider  the  conditions  prevailing 
in  a  system  which  consists  of  a  non-rotating  nucleus  surrounded 
^y  a  gyrating  ring  of  meteoric  substance.  The  conception  of 
fluid-pressure,  as  proposed  by  Professor  Darwin,  involves  the 
assumption  of  friction  between  star  and  ring.  The  star's  surface 
being  continually  bombarded  by  neighbouring  ring-particles,  rotary 
momentum  is  imparted  to  the  star,  and  is  consequently  lost  by 
the  ring.  The  motion  of  the  inner  ring  is  thus  gradually  reduced, 
in  much  the  same  way  as  that  of  an  air-current  passing  along 
the  earth's  surface.  The  friction  being  propagated  throughout  the 
whole  ring  in  accordance  with  laws  similar  to  those  of  the  internal 
friction  in  gaseous  media,  the  materials  of  the  ring  will  be  con- 
stantly submitted  to  resisting  forces  acting  in  the  direction  of  their 
motion.  Hence,  in  course  of  time,  the  eccentricity  of  the  ring, 
as  a  whole,  must  be  lessened,  and  the  system  will  tend  towards 
a  figure  of  equilibrium  consistent  with  fluid-pressure. 

This  reasoning  has  brought  us  to  the  state  of  matters  from 
which  Laplace  started  his  hypothesis.  We  see  now  some  possi- 
bility, at  least,  how,  by  accepting  this  new  hypothesis,  we  may  ex- 
plain the  introduction  of  rotation  into  our  system  without  abandon- 
ing any  of  the  Laplaceian  conclusions.  So  far  the  present  view 
may  therefore  be  considered  merely  as  an  extension  of  Laplace's 
cosmogonic  conceptions.  But  in  consideration  of  the  grave  objec- 
tions raised  against  the  nebular  hypothesis  in  its  present  form,  it 
may  seem  advisable  to  trace  also  the  further  development  of  the 
rotating  fluid,  and  to  see  whether  the  difficulties  expressed  by 
Mr  Moulton  and  others  are  indeed  so  insurmountable  as  they 
appear.  One  of  the  most  serious  objections  refers  to  the  formation 
of  the  planetary  rings.  The  intermittent  shedding-ofi*  of  annidar 
aggregates,  which  Laplace  assumes,  is  a  process  not  easily  adapt- 
able to  our  conception  of  the  physical  properties  of  meteoric 
matter.  But  I  think  this  hiatus  may  be  avoided.  Little  doubt 
can  be  felt  regarding  the  assumption  that  the  original  ring  must 
have  been  heterogeneous.  Granting  this,  we  must  admit  the 
existence  of  nuclei  of  condensation  within  the  ring  attracting  the 


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1904-5.]        Dr  J.  Halm  an  the  Nebular  Hypothesis.  557 

smaller  particles  around  them.  Now  let  us  consider  the  effect  of 
these  mutual  attractions.  All  the  particles  in  front  of  the  nucleus 
(counting  in  the  direction  of  the  rotation  of  the  ring)  are  pulled 
towards  the  condensation  by  forces,  the  tangential  components  of 
which  are  acting  against  their  orbital  motions  round  the  central 
star.  It  is  evident  that  these  particles  must  fall  toicards  the  sun  ; 
they  acquire  radial  velocities  in  the  inward  direction.  Exactly 
the  opposite  course  of  events  must  happen  with  particles  in  the 
rear.  Here  the  tangential  pull  is  in  the  direction  of  orbital 
motion ;  they  must  move  from  the  sun,  and  hence  acquire  radial 
velocities  in  the  outward  direction.  On  the  other  hand,  the 
attraction  of  the  particles  on  the  nucleus  acting  equally  in  all 
directions,  the  latter  suffers  no  deflection  from  its  original  motion. 
Now  it  is  easy  to  picture  what  will  happen  when  the  attracted 
particles  coalesce  with  the  nucleus.  The  conclusion  is  that 
neither  the  front  nor  the  rear  particles  fall  directly  towards  the 
centre  of  the  condensation :  all  the  front  particles  must  show  a 
tendency  to  swing  round  on  the  inner  side,  i,e,  between  nucleus 
and  sun,  and  all  the  rear  particles  on  the  outer  side.  Hence  the 
accreting  meteors  must  impart  a  rotary  motion  to  the  condensing 
nucleus,  and  the  direction  of  this  rotation  must  necessarily  be 
that  of  the  ring  itself.  Here,  then,  we  have  the  conditions  of 
rotary  motions  actually  existing  in  our  system.  Whereas  Laplace 
explains  planetary  rotation  by  the  difference  of  speed  between  * 
the  outer  and  inner  parts  of  the  ring,  which  he  must  therefore 
assume  to  rotate  with  uniform  angular  velocity,  we  find  now 
that  the  detachment  of  a  Laplaceian  ring  and  its  subsequent 
coalescence  into  a  planet  is  not  necessarily  required  to  account 
for  the  rotary  motions  of  the  planets. 

The  next  point  I  desire  to  illustrate  may  be  inferred  from  the 
following  consideration.  Let  us  imagine  two  bodies  of  equal 
masses  to  revolve  in  the  same  circle  round  tlie  sun.  Suppose,  also, 
that  the  distance  between  the  two  bodies  is  sufficiently  great  to 
permit  us  to  neglect  their  mutual  attractions.  Obviously  the 
time  of  their  revolution  will  also  be  exactly  the  same,  and  hence 
their  distance  from  each  other  will  remain  unaltered.  But  let  us 
assume  their  masses  to  be  unequal.  The  period  of  revolution  of 
the  heavier  body  being  shorter  than  that  of  the  lighter  body,  the 


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658  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Ediiiburgh,  [ass. 

former  must  gradually  overtake  the  latter.  If,  for  instance,  one 
of  the  bodies  possesses  the  mass' of  Jupiter,  while  the  other  body 
has  only  half  this  mass,  their  periods  would  be  in  the  ratio 
1 : 1  000237  ;  and  hence  if  the  bodies  had  been  180°  apart  in  the 
beginning,  they  would  be  at  identical  points  of  the  common  orbit 
in  about  14,000  years.  This  reasoning  shows  clearly  that  the 
planet,  after  having  attained  a  portion  of  its  mass  through 
accretion,  must  gradually  bring  under  its  gravitational  influence 
the  smaller  masses  revolving  in  its  orbit.  The  planet  would 
therefore  evacuate  its  own  ring.  But  if  we  accept  Professor 
Darwin's  conception  of  fluid-pressure,  the  idea  of  a  vacuum  cannot 
be  maintained.  The  gap  round  the  planet  would  be  constantly 
filled  up  by  meteors  rushing  into  the  planet's  orbit  from  the 
outer  and  inner  parts  of  the  ring.  The  planet  would  act  some- 
what like  a  powerful  air-pump,  sucking  in  the  meteoric  molecules 
thrown  into  its  sphere  of  gravitational  attraction  by  the  outside 
collisions.  We  may  also  gather  from  the  mode  in  which  the 
planet  acts  on  the  particles  in  its  front  and  rear  that  the  motions 
of  those  meteors  which  escape  amalgamation  with  the  attracting 
nucleus  are  deflected  either  towards  or  from  the  sun.  This,  no 
doubt,  must  increase  the  chance  of  collisions  with  the  inner  and 
outer  portions  of  the  ring.  It  is  also  understood  that  the  in- 
creasing diversity  of  motions  of  the  smaller  meteors  may  assist 
the  planets  in  their  function  of  incorporating  the  small  fragments 
thrown  into  their  paths.  There  should  be  a  gradual  approach 
towards  conditions  such  as  we  notice  at  the  present  moment  when 
we  find  meteors  crossing  the  earth's  orbit  in  all  possible  directions. 
I  am  far  from  saying,  however,  that  all  the  present  meteors  should 
be  considered  in  this  way  as  the  last  remnant  of  the  original  ring. 

A  point  of  extreme  difficulty  in  Laplace's  hypothesis  is  the 
explanation  of  the  present  slow  rotation  of  the  sun.  Mr  Moulton  * 
has  demonstrated  that  if  the  solar  nebula  had  contracted  in  the  way 
Laplace  assumed,  the  moment  of  momentum  of  the  solar  system 
should  be  more  than  two  hundred  times  what  it  actually  is ;  but, 
on  the  other  hand,  if  the  nebula  had  always  possessed  its  present 

*F.  R.  Moulton,  "An  Attempt  to  Test  the  Nebular  Hypothesis  by  an 
Appeal  to  the  Laws  of  DynBm\c%^^  AstropkysicaZ  Joximal,  vol.  xl,  1900, 
p.  108. 


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1904-6.]         Dr  J.  Halm  on  the  Nebular  Hypothesis.  559 

moment  of  momentum,  the  centrifugal  force  could  not  have  over- 
balanced the  centripetal  force  until  the  solar  body  had  shrunk 
far  within  the  orbit  of  Mercury.  This  argument  against  the 
Laplaceian  view  seems  to  me  unanswerable,  and  I  agree  with 
Mr  Moulton  when  he  contends  that  it  "points  to  a  mode  of 
development  quite  different  from,  and  much  more  complicated 
than,  that  postulated  in  the  nebular  theory."  The  present  view  is 
not  exposed  to  this  difficulty ;  on  the  contrary,  the  slow  rotation 
of  the  sun  follows  of  necessity  from  the  mode  in  which  rotation 
is  supposed  to  have  been  brought  into  the  system. 

A  further  point  in  favour  of  the  hypothesis  seems  to  be  the  reason- 
ing by  which  the  existence  of  comets  and  the  peculiarities  of  their 
orbits  may  be  explained.  Laplace,  as  is  well  known,  considered  the 
comets  as  bodies  not  belonging  to  our  system.  He  arrived  at  this 
conclusion  by  investigating  the  question  what  form  of  cometary 
orbits  should  be  the  most  probable  if  they  are  bodies  launched 
upon  us  from  outside  space.  He  found  that  the  most  probable 
orbit  must  be  the  parabola ;  and  since  this  is  indeed  the  typical 
form  of  cometary  orbits,  he  concluded  that  his  supposition  on 
their  origin  was  correct.  Subsequently,  however,  Schiaparelli  has 
proved  that  Laplace  committed  an  error  in  his  analysis,  and  that 
the  result  to  be  expected  from  Laplace's  supposition  should  be 
exactly  opposite  to  his  conjecture.  Schiaparelli  showed  that  the 
parabola  is  in  fact  the  least  probable  curve  in  which  a  foreign 
body  may  intrude  upon  our  system,  and  that  under  Laplace's 
supposition  the  great  majority  of  orbits  should  be  hyperbolic. 
His  researches  leave  scarcely  any  doubt  that  the  comets  are 
members  of  our  own  system ;  that  at  practically  infinite  distance 
there  exists  a  cosmic  cloud  travelling  with  our  sun  through  space 
with  practically  the  same  speed  and  in  the  same  direction ;  and 
that  all  the  comets  originate  from  this  mysterious  appendage.  To 
explain  these  facts  by  the  Laplaceian  hypothesis  seems  to  me 
extremely  difficult ;  but  they  are  rendered  almost  obvious  by  the 
present  theory.  I  have  shown  in  my  paper  on  temporary  stars 
that  through  the  catastrophe  the  star  becomes  sun'ounded  with 
an  expanding  atmosphere  of  gases  and  vapours.  We  have  the 
strongest  possible  evidence  of  the  presence  of  this  atmosphere  in 
the  absorption-bands  of  the  spectra  of  new  stars,  which  by  their 


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560  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh.  [i 

displacements  towards  the  violet  indicate  that  the  ejected  gases 
move  with  enormous  velocities,  the  greatest  exceeding  the  critical 
velocity  of  a  star  such  as  our  sun.  Matter  moving  with  such  speeds 
is  most  probably  for  ever  lost  But  we  may  admit  that  there 
must  be  a  considerable  range  of  velocities  among  the  various 
parts  of  this  expanding  cloud.  Some  move  quicker,  others 
more  slowly,  and  all  those  particles  whose  initial  velocities  were 
less  than  the  critical  will  sooner  or  later  come  to  a  point  of 
rest  whence  they  begin  their  return  journey  towards  the  star. 
Obviously  the  slowest  particles  must  have  returned  soonest ;  they 
have  either  impinged  upon  the  solar  body  long  ago,  or,  in 
consequence  of  perturbations,  have  been  drawn  into  elliptic 
orbits.  They  may  have  formed  systems  of  periodic  comets  in  the 
past,  which  now,  through  the  continued  disintegrating  action  of 
the  sun  and  planets,  have  degenerated  into  meteoric  swarms. 
Some  of  the  present  ^leriodic  swarms  probably  had  this  origin. 
If  this  view  is  correct,  then  the  comets  falling  upon  our  system 
at  the  present  moment  must  move  in  ellipses  not  distinguishable 
from  parabolae,  since  their  return  points  must  have  been  at 
practically  infinite  distances  from  the  sun.  That  the  fall  of 
these  bodies  is  not  central,  may  be  explained  by  the  doubtless 
inevitable  perturbations  experienced,  not  only  during  their  outward 
journey,  but  perhaps  also  at  the  outer  limit,  where  the  cloud  may 
at  times  have  been  under  the  gravitational  influence  of  neigh- 
bouring stars.*  Accepting  this  view,  we  understand  why  comets 
describe  parabolic  and  elliptic  orbits,  why  all  inclinations  are 
possible,  and  why  there  is  the  well-known  physical  resemblance 
between  the  members  of  this  cosmic  family.  The  expanding 
atmosphere  of  a  new  star  would  thus  be  a  cometary  cloud  in  statu 
nascendi. 

The  assumption  of  previous  solar  condensation,  which  is  clearly 
necessary  in  this  theory,  may  appear  as  a  disadvantage,  because  it 
involves  the  creation  and  expenditure  of  solar  energy  before  the 
planets  were  formed,  and  thereby  seems  to  limit  the  time  at  our 
disposal  for  explaining  the  evolution  of  the  planetary  system.  But, 
on  the  one  hand,  we  must  keep  in  mind  that  the  generation  of  heat 
by  contraction  is  at  first  a  slow  process.  Indeed,  the  amount  of 
*  This  is  also  Schiaparelli*8  view. 


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1904-5.]         Dv  J.KolmontJie  Nehilar  Rypothesis,  561 

caloric  energy  produced  by  the  sun  through  contraction  from  infinity 
to  the  orbit  of  Mercury  is  little  more  than  one  per  cent,  of  what  he 
acquired  afterwards  through  shrinkage  to  the  present  diameter. 
On  the  other  hand,  this  loss  may  have  been  fully  compensated  by 
the  impact  of  the  meteoric  cloud.  Considering  the  enormous  rise 
of  temperature  when  this  happened,  it  is  not  unlikely  that  the  ring 
which  probably  first  developed  near  the  sun's  surface,  where  the 
destruction  of  orbital  motion  was  greatest,  through  the  heat  de- 
veloped by  the  collisions,  expanded  and  afterwards  filled  the  whole 
space  of  the  planetary  system. 

But  these  are  perhaps  futile  speculations  which  I  will  not  pursue 
further,  fearing  that  in  this  general  outline  already  the  hypothesis 
has  stretched  too  far  into  the  regions  of  uncontrolled  imagination. 
Considered  by  itself,  the  theory  would  be  of  little  value.  But  the 
fact,  acknowledged  by  common  consent,  that  collisions  between 
stars  and  nebulae  occur  even  now  before  our  eyes  in  temporary 
stars,  and  that  they  are  accompanied  by  phenomena  which,  judging 
from  the  spectroscopic  evidence,  point  to  the  genesis  of  a  rotating 
ring  of  nebular  matter  round  the  attracting  body,  is  so  suggestive 
of  a  similar  course  of  events  having  been  the  cause  of  the  rotation 
in  our  system,  that  I  could  not  resist  the  temptation  to  venture 
upon  speculative  ground.  Certainly  no  extraordinary  gift  of 
imagination  is  required  to  picture  to  ourselves  the  spectrum  of  the 
solar  system  under  the  initial  conditions  here  assumed,  with  its 
expanding  atmosphere  of  embryonal  comets  and  the  luminous  ring 
of  meteoric  substance,  the  protoplasm  of  the  future  planets,  and 
then  to  realise  that  this  spectrum  must  have  appeared  to  a  distant 
observer  in  space  as  the  typical  spectrum  of  a  new  star.  Tlie 
**  experimental "  proof  of  the  theory,  afforded  by  the  preceding 
examination  of  the  spectroscopic  evidence  of  temporary  stars,  is 
therefore  encouraging,  whatever  may  otherwise  be  urged  against 
the  superficial  and  highly  incomplete  treatment  of  so  important  a 
question  in  this  communication. 


{Isftued  separately  April  15,  1905. ) 


PROC.  ROY.  SOC.  BDIN. — VOL.  XXV.  36 


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562  Proceedings  of  Saycd  Society  of  Edinburgh,         [i 


Deep  Water  Ship-Wavee.*    {Continued  from  Proc.  R.S.K, 
June  20th,  1904.)    By  Lord  Kelvin. 

(MS.  received  January  28,  1905.     Read  same  date. ) 

S  32-64.  Canal  Ship-Waves. 

§  32.  To  avoid  the  somewhat  cumhrous  title  "Two-dimensional," 
I  now  use  the  designation  "  Canal  t  Waves "  to  denote  waves  in 
a  canal  with  horizontal  bottom  and  vertical  sides,  which,  if 
not  two-dimensional  in  their  source,  become  more  and  more 
approximately  two-dimensional  at  greater  and  greater  distances 
from  the  source.  In  the  present  communication  the  source  is 
such  as  to  render  the  motion  two-dimensional  throughout;  the 
two  dimensions  being  respectively  perpendicular  to  the  bottom, 
and  parallel  to  the  length  of  the  canal :  the  canal  being  straight. 

§  33.  The  word  "  deep "  in  the  present  communication  and 
its  two  predecessors  (g  1-31)  is  used  for  brevity  to  mean 
infinitely  deep;  or  so  deep  that  the  motion  does  not  differ 
sensibly  from  what  it  would  be  if  the  water,  being  incompressible, 
were  infinitely  deep.  This  condition  is  practically  fulfilled  in 
water  of  finite  depth  if  the  distance  between  every  crest  (point 
of  maximum  elevation),  and  neighbouring  crest  on  either  side,  is 
more  than  two  or  three  times  its  distance  from  the  bottom. 

§  34.  By  "  ship- waves  "  I  mean  any  waves  produced  in  open 
sea  or  in  a  canal  by  a  moving  generator;  and  for  simplicity  I 
r..tr»ru^ao  tiiA  nirttion  of  the  generator  to  be  rectilineal  and  uniform. 


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1904-5.]      Lord  Kelvin  on  Deep  Water  Ship-Waves,  563 

The  generator  may  be  a  ship  floating  on  the  water,  or  a  submarine 
ship  or  a  flsh  moving  at  uniform  speed  below  the  surface;  or, 
as  suggested  by  Bayleigh,  an  electrified  body  moving  above  the 
surface.  For  canal  ship-waves,  if  the  motion  of  the  water  close 
to  the  source  is  to  be  two-dimensional,  the  ship  or  submarine 
must  be  a  pontoon  having  its  sides  (or  a  submerged  bar  having 
its  ends)  plane  and  fitting  to  the  sides  of  the  canal,  with 
freedom  to  move  horizontally.  The  submerged  surface  must  be 
cylindric  with  generating  lines  perpendicular  to  the  sides. 

§  35.  The  case  of  a  circular  cylindric  bar  of  diameter  small  com- 
pared with  its  depth  below  the  surface,  moving  horizontally  at  a 
constant  speed,  is  a  mathematical  problem  which  presents  interest- 
ing difficulties,  worthy  of  serious  work  for  anyone  who  may  care 
to  undertake  it.  The  case  of  a  floating  pontoon  is  much  more 
difficult,  because  of  the  discontinuity  between  free  surface  of 
water  and  water-surface  pressed  by  a  rigid  body  of  given  shape, 
displacing  the  water. 

§  36.  Choosing  a  much  easier  problem  than  either  of  those,  I 
take  as  wave  generator  a  forcive  *  consisting  of  a  given  continuous 
distribution  of  pressure  at  the  surface,  travelling  over  the  surface 
at  a  given  speed.  To  understand  the  relation  of  this  to  the 
pontoon  problem,  imagine  the  rigid  surface  of  the  pontoon  to 
become  flexible ;  and  imagine  applied  to  it,  a  given  distribution  n 
of  pressure,  everywhere  perpendicular  to  it.  Take  0,  any  point  at 
a  distance  h  above  the  undisturbed  water-level,  draw  O  X  parallel 
to  the  length  of  the  canal  and  OZ  vertically  downwards.  Let 
^,  {  be  the  displacement-components  of  any  particle  of  the  water 
whose  undisturbed  position  is  (a;,  z).  We  suppose  the  disturbance 
infinitesimal;  by  which  we  mean  that  the  change  of  distance 
between  any  two  particles  of  water  is  infinitely  small  in  comparison 
with  their  undisturbed  distance ;  and  that  the  line  joining  them 
experiences  changes  of  direction  which  are  infinitely  small  in 
comparison  with  the  radian.  For  liberal  interpretation  o^  this 
condition  see  §  61  below.  Water  being  assumed  frictionless,  its 
motion,  started  primarily  from  rest   by  pressure  applied  to  the 

*  '*  Forcive"  is  a  very  useful  word  introduced,  after  careful  consultation 
with  literary  authorities,  by  my  brother  the  late  Prof.  James  Thomson,  to 
denote  any  system  of  force. 


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564  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  EdiTiburgh.         [sbssl 

free  surface^  is  essentially  irrotational.  But  we  need  not  assume 
this  at  present :  we  see  immediately  that  it  is  proved  by  onr 
equations  of  motion,  when  in  them  we  suppose  the  motion  to  be 
infinitesimal.  The  equations  of  motion,  when  the  density  of  the 
liquid  is  taken  as  unity,  are : — 


df-    ^dx    ^dz  dx 

dfi      ax      dz  dz 


(59). 


where  g  denotes  the  force  of  gravity  and  p  the  pressure  at  (a:,  2,  t). 
Assuming  now  the  liquid  to  be  incompressible,  we  have 

i4-« <«»■ 

§  37.  The  motion  being  assumed  to  be  infinitesimal,  the  second 
and  third  terms  of  the  first  members  of  (59)  are  n^ligible,  and 
the  equations  of  motion  become : — 


^^    _^dp\ 
dt^  dx 

dt'^     -^     dz] 


(61). 


This,  by  taking  the  difference  of  two  differentiations,  gives : — 

(62), 


d/d^     dt\ 
dt\dz  ^ dx) 


which  shows  that  if  at  any  time  the  motion  is  zero  or  irrotational, 
it  remains  irrotational  for  ever. 

§  38.  If  at  any  time  there  is  rotational  motion  in  any  part  of 
the  liquid,  it  is  interesting  to  know  what  becomes  of  it.  Leaving 
for  a  moment  our  present  restriction  to  canal  waves,  imagine  our- 
selves on  a  very  smooth  sea  in  a  ship,  kept  moving  uniformly  at 
a  good  speed  by  a  tow-rope  above  the  water.  Looking  over  the 
8hip'&  side  we  see  a  layer  of  disturbed  motion,  showing  by  dimples 
in  the  surface  innumerable  little  whirl p6ol8.  The  thickness  of 
this  layer  increases  from  nothing  perceptible  near  the  bow  to 
perhaps  10  or  20  cms.  near  the  stem;  more  or  less  according 
to  the  length  and  speed  of  the  ship.  If  now  the  water  suddenly 
loses  viscosity  and  becomes  a  perfect  fluid,  the  dynamics  of  vortex 


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1904-5.]      Lord  Kelvia  on  Deep  JVater  Ship- Waves,  565 

motion  tells  us  that  the  rotationally  moving  water  gets  left  behind 
by  the  ship,  and  spreads  out  in  the  more  and  more  distant  wake 
and  becomes  lost;*  without,  however,  losing  its  kinetic  energy, 
which  becomes  reduced  to  infinitely  small  velocities  in  an 
infinitely  large  portion  of  liquid.  The  ship  now  goes  on  through 
the  calm  sea  without  producing  any  more  eddies  along  its  sides 
and  stern,  but  leaving  within  an  acute  angle  on  each  side  of  its 
wake,  smooth  ship-waves  with  no  eddies  or  turbulence  of  any 
kind.  The  ideal  annulment  of  the  water's  viscosity  diminishes 
considerably  the  tension  of  the  tow-rope,  but  by  no  means  annuls 
it;  it  has  still  work  to  do  on  an  ever  increasing  assemblage  of 
regular  waves  extending  farther  and   farther  right  astern,  and 

over  an  area  of  19*  28'  (tan  ~^. /t;)  on  each  side  of  mid-wake,  as 

we  shall  see  in  about  §  80  below.  Returning  now  to  two-dimen- 
sional motion  and  canal  waves :  we,  in  virtue  of  (62),  put 

where  ^  denotes  what  is  commonly  called  the  "velocity- 
potential";  which,  when  convenient,  we  shall  write  in  full 
^(a:,  2,  i).  With  this  notation  (6 1 )  gives  by  integration  with 
respect  to  x  and  2, 

^--y+iK'+C) m- 


And  (60)  gives 


Following  Fourier's  method,  take  now 

<^(ar,  2,  0  =  -  li^-"^  sin  m{x^vt)  ,     .     .     .     (66), 

*  It  now  seems  to  me  certain  that  if  any  moliou  be  given  within  a  finite 
portion  of  an  infinite  incompressible  liquid  originally  at  rest,  its  fate  is 
necessarily  dissipation  to  infinite  distances  with  infinitely  small  velocities 
evtrywhere;  while  the  total  kinetic  energy  remains  constant.  After 
many  years  of  failure  to  prove  that  the  motion  in  the  ordinary  Helmholtz 
circular  ring  is  stable,  I  came  to  the  conclusion  that  it  is  essentially  unstable, 
and  that  its  fate  must  be  to  become  dissipated  as  now  described.  I  came 
to  this  conclusion  by  extensions  not  hitherto  published  of  the  considerations 
described  in  a  short  paper  entitled :  **  On  the  stability  of  .steady  and  periodic 
fluid  motion/'  in  the  Fhil,  Mag,  for  Mny  1887. 


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566  Proceedbxgs  of  Royal  Society  of  Bdiriburgh.         [siss. 

which  satisfies  (65)  and  expresses  a  sinusoidal  wave-disturbance, 
of  wave-length  2ir/m,  travelling  ar- wards  with  velocity  v, 

§  39.  To  find  the  boundary-pressure  II,  which  must  act  on  the 
water-surface  to  get  the  motion  represented  by  (66),  when  m,  r,  A: 
are  given,  we  must  apply  (64)  to  the  boundary.  Let  z==0  be  the 
undisturbed  surface ;  and  let  d  denote  its  depression,  at  (a-,  o,  t), 
below  undisturbed  level ;  that  is  to  say, 

<l  =  ^(ic,  o,  t)  =  --<f>{x,  z,  t%^^ink  sin  m(x-vt)    .     (67), 
az 

whence  by  integration  with  respect  to  t, 

d=- cos  m(x-vt) (68). 

V 

To  apply  (64)  to  the  surface,  we  must,  in  gz^  put  z  —  d;  and  in 
dff>/dt  we  may  put  z  =»  0,  because  d,  k,  are  infinitely  small  quantities 
of  the  first  order,  and  their  product  is  neglected  in  our  problem  of 
infinitesimal  displacements.  Hence  with  (66)  and  (68),  and 
with  n  taken  to  denote  surface-pressure,  (64)  becomes 

kmv  cos  yn{x  -  r/)  =  ^k  cos  m{x  -  vt)  -Il-{-gG     ,    (69) ; 

V 

whence,  with  the  arbitrary  constant  C  taken  =  0 , 

11  =  Ai7^  --  -  mj  cos  m{x  -vt) (70) ; 

and,  eliminating  k  by  (68),  we  have  finally, 

n  =  (i/-mt;2)d (71). 

Thus  we  see  that  if  r  =  n/^//w,  we  have  n  =  0,  and  therefore  we 
have  a  train  of  free  sinusoidal  waves  having  wave-length  equal  to 
27r/m,  This  is  the  well-known  law  of  relation  between  velocity 
and  length  of  free  deep-sea  waves.  But  if  r  is  not  equal  to  ,Jg/m , 
we  have  forced  waves  with  a  surface-pressure  (^-mr*)d  which 
is  directed  with  or  against  the  displacement  according  as 
v<  or  >^g/m. 

§  40.  Let  now  our  problem  be : — given  n,  a  sum  of  sinusoidal 
functions,  instead  of  a  single  one,  as  in  (70); — required  d  the 
resulting  displacement  of  the  water-surface.  We  have  by  (71) 
and  (70),  with  properly  altered  notation. 


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1904-6.]      Lord  Kelvin  on  Deep  Water  Ship-  Waves.  567 

U  =  'SBcoam{x-vt  +  fi) (72), 

d^':i,  ^-^-^008  m(X'-vt  + 8)  + A  cosi.{x-vt  +  y)    .     (73), 

where  B,  m,  fi  are  given  constants  having  different  values  in  the 
different  terms  of  the  sums ;  and  t;  is  a  given  constant  velocity. 
The  last  term  of  (73)  expresses,  with  two  arbitrary  constants 
(A,  y),  a  train  of  free  waves  which  we  may  superimpose  on  any 
solution  of  our  problem. 

§  41.  It  is  very  interesting  and  instructive  in  respect  to  the 
dynamics  of  water-waves,  to  apply  (72)  to  a  particular  case  of 
Fourier's  expansion  of  periodic  arbitrary  functions  such  as  a  dis- 
tribution of  alternate  constant  pressures,  and  zeros,  on  equal 
successive  spaces,  travelling  with  velocity  v.  But  this  must  be 
left  undone  for  the  present,  to  let  us  get  on  with  ship- waves ;  and 
for  this  purpose  we  may  take  as  a  case  of  (72),  (73), 

n  =  ^c{^-Heco8^-He«cos2^  +  etc.)«yc^_|^^J^^^^  ^^      (74), 


'-^'{^ 


+    .l^costf-H^i^cos2tf  +  etc.  I       .     .     .(75); 
J  —  1  J  —  2  3 


where 


Q^'^JLi^^vt^fl) (76); 

a 

•"-'h^-l-B <">^ 

and  e  may  be  any  numeric  <  1.  Remark  that  when  t?  =  0 ,  J  =  oo  , 
and  we  have  by  (75)  and  (74),  d  =  n/^,  which  explains  our  unit 
of  pressure, 

§  42.  To  understand  the  dynamical  conditions  thus  prescribed, 
and  the  resulting  motion:  —  remark  first  that  (74),  with  (76), 
represents  a  space-periodic  distribution  of  pressure  on  the  surface, 
travelling  with  velocity  » ;  and  (75)  represents  the  displacement 
of  the  water-surface  in  the  resulting  motion,  when  space-periodic 
of  the  same  space-period  as  the  surface-pressure.  Any  motion 
whatever;  consequent  on  any  initial  disturbance  and  no  subse- 
quent application  of  surface-pressure ;  may  be  superimposed  on  the 
solution  represented  by  (75),  to  constitute  the  complete  solution 


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568  Proceedings  of  Bat/al  Society  of  Edinburgh.         [siaB, 

of  the  problem  of  finding  the  motion  in  which  the  sorface-pressore 
is  that  given  in  (74). 

§  43.  To  understand  thoroughly  the  constitution  of  the  forcive- 
datum  (74)  for  n,  it  is  helpful  to  know  that,  n  denoting  any 
positive  or  negative  integer,  we  have 

ba 


2ir(i  +  ecos^  +  e«co82^  +  etc.)=    2 


n— OD  l;^-¥{x-na)^ 


ft  =  ^log(l/e) 
2ir 


1 


(78), 


(79). 


This  we  find  by  applying  §  15  above  to  the  periodic  function 
represented  by  the  second  member  of  (78). 

The  equality  of  the  two  members  of  (78)  is  illustrated  by  fig.  11 ; 

O        'I        l       'I        4      -5       -6       -r       •«      •<}       C' 


Fio.  11  ;  e=*6, 


in  which ;  for  the  case  c=  '5  and  consequently,  by  (79),  6/a= -1103; 
the  heavy  curve  represents  the  first  member,  and  the  two  light 
curves  represent  two  terms  of  the  second  member ;  which  are  as 


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1901-5.]      Lord  Kelvin  on  Deep  WcUer  Skip-  Waves. 


669 


many  as  the  scale  of  the  diagram  allows  to  be  seen  on  it.  There 
is  a  somewhat  close  agreement  between  each  of  the  light  curves, 
and  the  part  of  the  heavy  curve  between  a  maximum  and  the 
minimum  on  each  side  of  it.  Thus  we  see  that  even  with  e  so 
small  as  '5,  we  have  a  not  very  roicgh  approximation  to  equality 


i    'f    f 


'b 


4—4- 


Fio.  12  ;  «=-9. 

between  successive  half  periods  of  the  first  member  of  (78)  and  a 
single  term  of  its  second  member.  If  e  is  <1  by  an  infinitely 
small  difference  this  approximation  is  infinitely  nearly  perfect. 
It  is  so  nearly  perfect  for  6=*9  that  fig.  12  cannot  show  any 
deviation  from  it,  on  a  scale  of  ordinates  1/10  of  that  of  fig.  11. 
The  tendency  to  agreement  between  the  first  member  of  (78)  and 
a  single  term  of  its  second  member  with  values  of  e  approaching  to 
1,  is  well  shown  by  the  following  modification  of  the  last  member 
of  (74) :— 

^(l-e«)  ^(1-e^) 

""•^^l-2eco8^  +  e2-^^(l-6)2  +  4eain2J^    '     '  ^^^)- 

Thus  we  see  that  if  e  =  1 ,  11  is  very  great  when  6  is  very  small ; 
and  n  is  very  small  urUesa  $  is  very  small  (or  very  nearly  =  2i7r). 
Thus  when  e  =  1,  we  have 


ge 


1(1 -«^) 


(81); 


which  means  expressing  n  approximately  by  a  single  term  of  the 
second  member  of  (78). 


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570  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh,         [i 

§  44.  Return  to  our  dynamical  solution  (75) ;  and  remark  that 
if  J  is  an  integer,  one  term  of  (75)  is  infinite,  of  which  the 
dynamical  meaning  is  clear  in  (70).  Hence  to  have  every  term 
of  (75)  finite  we  must  have  J  -J  +  8,  where  ;  is  an  integer  and  8  is 
<  1 ;  and  we  may  conveniently  write  (75)  as  follows  : 


l  =  c(8+i){i8| 


e  COS  d      e*  cos  20  ^  cosjtf 

•  +  ^  ,    •       1  +  s~T7      o  +  .  .  .  .   +         K 


e/^^cosO>l)^     ^"^70^^^)^-adinf,]       (82); 


or 


d=<§^+c/ (83), 

where  y  and  J  denote  finite  and  infinite  series  shown  in  (82). 

§  45.  We  are  going  to  make  $  =  | ;  and  in  this  case  J  can  be 
summed,  in  finite  terms,  as  follows.  First  midtiply  each  term  hy 
^•+1  e-;-«'  and  we  find 

c/=  -c(8+^y+«[j-j'^cos(i+l)^+  2*:^cosO'  +  2)^+etc.] 
=  -c(8+y)e^+«  /^(/d  e-«cos(y+l)tf+ei-«cos(y  +  2)tf  +  etc.  1 
=  -  c(8  +jV+*  [de  e-«{RS}^+i(l  +  eg  +  eV + ©tc.) ; 

where  g  denotes  €^ ;  and,  as  in  §  3  above,  {RS}  denotes 
realisation  by  taking  half  sum  for  ±t.  Summing  the  infinite 
series,  and  performing /Se ,  for  the  case  8  =  |,  we  find 

c/=-cO'  +  J)e»+*{RS}2*+Uogi±>^ (84), 

^     ^         I      i^i  1- ^ecosj^-t^esm^^ 

^=tan-»/7^^^,..  f  =  tan-i  ^^^i-^ij     .    .  (86), 
l  +  /v/ecos^^  l-/^€cosJ^ 


where 


and  therefore 


1  -e  • 


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1904-5.]      Lord  Kelvin  on  Deep  Water  SMp-Waves^  571 

Hence  finally 

+«iiy  +  i)»  l.ii-'?4^iil»  I  .  (86). 
1  -e      J 

For  our  present  case,  of  8  =  J ,  (82)  gives 
^-«'0>i){ij^+^+^-^'+....  +  ?^'}     (87). 

With  c/  and  <^  thus  expressed,  (83)  gives  the  solution  of  our 
problem. 

§  46.  In  all  the  calculations  of  §§  46-61  I  have  taken  e=  '9,  as 
suggested  for  hydrokinetic  illustrations  in  Lecture  X.  of  my 
Baltimore  Lectures,  pp.  113,  114,  from  which  fig.  12,  and  part  of 
fig.  11  above,  are  taken.  Results  calculated  from  (83),  (86),  (87), 
are  represented  in  figs.  13-16,  all  for  the  same  forcive,  (74)  with 
€"'9,  and  for  the  four  different  velocities  of  its  travel,  which 
correspond  to  the  values  20,  9,  4,  0,  of  /.  The  wave-lengths 
of  free  waves  having  these  velocities  are  [(77)  above]  2a/41, 
2a/19,  2a/ 9,  and  2a.  The  velocities  are  inversely  proportional 
to  ^41,  ^19,  ^9,  J2,  Each  diagram  shows  the  forcive  by  one 
curve,  a  repetition  of  fig.  12;  and  shows  by  another  curve  the 
depression,  d,  of  the  water-surface  produced  by  it,  when  travelling 
at  one  or  other  of  the  four  speeds. 

§  47.  Taking  first  the  last,  being  the  highest,  of  those  speeds, 
we  see  by  fig.  16  that  the  forcive  travelling  at  that  speed  produces 
maximum  displacement  uptcards  where  the  dovmward  pressure  is 
greatest ;  and  maximum  dovmward  displacement  where  the  pressure 
(everywhere  downward)  is  least.  Judging  dynamically  it  is  easy 
to  see  that  greater  and  greater  speeds  of  the  forcive  would  still 
give  displacements  above  the  mean  level  where  the  downward 
pressure  of  the  forcive  is  greatest,  and  below  the  mean  level  where 
it  is  least;  but  with  diminishing  magnitudes  down  to  zero  for 
infinite  speed. 

And  in  (75)  we  have,  for  all  positive  values  of  J<1,  a  series 
always  convergent,  (though  sluggishly  when  e=l,)  by  which  the 
displacement  can  be  exactly  calculated  for  every  value  of  $, 

§48.  Take  nextffig.  15,  for  which  J=4J,  and  therefore,  by 


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572  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  JSdinburgh.       ,  [i 


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1904-6.]       Lord  Kelvin  on  Deep  Water  Ship-Wave^,  olZ 


C5 


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674  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh,  \\ 


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1904^.]      Lord  Kelvin  on  Deep  Water  Ship^  Waves.  575 


o 
ii 


e 


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576  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  JEdirihurgh.         [i 


(77),  V  =  Jgaj^w,  and  X  =  a/4-5.  Remark  that  the  scale  of 
ordinates  is,  in  fig.  15,  only  1/2*5  of  the  scale  in  fig.  16 ;  and  see  how 
enormously  great  is  the  water-disturhance  now  in  comparison  with 
what  we  had  with  the  same  forcive,  but  three  times  greater  speed 
and  nine  times  greater  wave-length  (v  =  Jga/v^  X  =  2a).  Within 
the  space-period  of  fig.  1 5  we  see  four  complete  waves,  very  approxi- 
mately sinusoidal,  between  M,  M,  two  maximums  of  depression 
which  are  almost  exactly  (but  very  slightly  less  than)  quarter 
wave-lengths  between  C  and  C.  Imagine  the  curve  to  be  exactly 
sinusoidal  throughout,  and  continued  sinusoidally  to  cut  the  zero 
line  at  CC. 

We  should  thus  have  in  C  C  a  train  of  4 J  sinusoidal  waves ; 
and  if  the  same  is  continued  throughout  the  infinite  procession 
....  CCC  ....  we  have  a  discontinuous  periodic  curve 
made  up  of  continuous  portions  each  4^  periods  of  sinusoidal 
curve  beginning  and  ending  with  zero.  The  change  at  each  point 
of  discontinuity  C  is  merely  a  half-period  change  of  phase.  A 
slight  alteration  of  this  discontinuous  curve  within  60*  on  each 
side  of  each  C,  converts  it  into  the  continuous  wavy  curve  of  fig.  15, 
which  represents  the  water-surface  due  to  motion  at  speed  fjga/9v 
of  the  pressural  forcive  represented  by  the  other  continuous  curve 
of  fig.  15. 

§  49.  Every  word  of  §  48  is  applicable  to  figs.  14  and  13  except 
references  to  ^eed  of  the  forcive,  which  is  Jga/ldir  for  fig.  14 
and  Jga/^lir  for  fig.  13;  and  other  statements  requiring  modifica- 
tion as  follows : — 

For  4^  "periods"  or  ** waves,"  in  respect  to  fig.  15;  substitute 
9i  in  respect  to  fig.  14,  and  20 J  in  respect  to  fig.  13. 

For  "depression"  in  defining  M  M  in  respect  to  figs.  15,  14; 
substitute  elevation  in  the  case  of  fig.  13. , 

§  50.  How  do  we  know  that,  as  said  in  §  48,  the  formula 
{(83),  (86),  (87)}  gives  for  a  wide  range  of  about  120'  on  each 
side  of  ^=180', 

dW==(-l)^d(180').sinO'  +  i)^  .  .  .  (88), 
which  is  merely  §§  48,  49  in  symbols  ?  it  being  understood  that  j 
is  any  integer  not  <  4 ;  and  that  e  is  '9^  or  any  numeric  between 
'9  and  1  ?    I  wish  I  could  give  a  short  answer  to  this  question 


/Goog^ 


1904-5.]       Lord  Kelvin  on  Deep  Water  Ship- Waves.  577 

without  help  of  hydrokinetic  ideas !  Here  is  the  only  answer  I 
can  give  at  present. 

§  51.  Look  at  figs.  12-16,  and  see  how,  in  the  forcive  de- 
fined by  c='9,  the  pressure  is  almost  wholly  confined  to  the 
spaces  ^<60*  on  each  side  of  each  of  its  maximums,  and  is  very 
Ttearly  null  from  ^=60*  to  ^=300*.  It  is  obvious  that  if  the 
j  -essure  were  perfectly  annulled  in  these  last-mentioned  spaces, 
viiile  in  the  spaces  within  60*  on  each  side  of  each  maximum 
the  pressure  is  that  expressed  by  (74),  the  resulting  motion  would 
be  sensibly  the  same  as  if  the  pressure  were  throughout  the  whole 
space  C  C  (^  =  0*  to  ^=  360"),  exactly  that  given  by  (74).  Hence 
we  must  expect  to  find  through  nearly  the  whole  space  of  240*, 
from  60*  to  300*,  an  almost  exactly  sinusoidal  displacement  of 
water-surface,  having  the  wave-length  360*/(y-!-J)  due  to  the 
translational  speed  of  the  forcive. 

§  52.  I  confess  that  I  did  7ioi  expect  so  small  a  difference  from 
sinusoidality  through  the  whole  240*,  as  calculation  by  {(83),  (86), 
(87)}  has  proved;  and  as  is  shown  in  figs.  18,  19,  20,  by  the 
D-curve  on  the  right-hand  side  of  C,  which  represents  in  each 
case  the  value  of 

D(^)  =  d(^)  -  (  -  1)M(180*).  sin  U  +  i)^  .     .     .     (89), 

being  the  difference  of  d(^)  from  one  continuous  sinusoidal  curve. 
The  exceeding  smallness  of  this  difference  for  distances  from 
C  exceeding  20*  or  30*,  and  therefore  through  a  range  between 
C  C  of  320*,  or  300*,  is  very  remarkable  in  each  case. 

§  53.  The  dynamical  interpretation  of  (88),  and  figs.  18,  19,  20, 
is  this: — Superimpose  on  the  solution  {(83),  (86),  (87)}  a  "free 
-wave  "  solution  according  to  (73),  taken  as 

-(-l)>d(180*).  sin(i-hi)d    ....     (90). 

This  approximately  annuls  the  approximately  sinusoidal  portion 
between  C  and  C  shown  in  figs.  (13),  (14),  (15);  and  approxi- 
mately doubles  the  approximately  sinusoidal  displacement  in  the 
corresponding  portions  of  the  spaces  CC,  and  CC  on  the  two 
sides  of  C  C.  This  is  a  very  interesting  solution  of  our  problem 
§  41 ;  and,  though  it  is  curiously  artificial,  it  leads  direct  and 
short  to  the  determinate  solution  of  the  following  general  problem 
of  canal  ship- waves : — 

PROC.  ROY.  SOC.  EDIN. — VOL.  XXV.  37 


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678  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh, 


[SBSS. 


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1904-5.]      Lord  Kelvin  on  Deep  Water  Ship-Waves,  579 


"^ 

«N 

t« 

t4 

*s 

0 

^ 

^ 

N 

X 

•^4 

< 

•9 

^ 

^^ 

0- 

0» 


^  Cr 

»  «    Ml 


-><»* 


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580  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh.         [t 

§  54.  Given,  as  forcive,  the  isolated  distribution  of  pressure 
defined  in  fig.  12,  travelling  at  a  given  constant  speed;  required 
the  steady  distribution  of  displacement  of  the  water  in  the  place 
of  the  forcive,  and  before  it  and  behind  it ;  which  becomes  estab- 
lished after  the  motion  of  the  forcive  has  been  kept  steady  for 
a  sufficiently  long  time.  Pure  synthesis  of  the  special  solution 
given  in  g  1-10  above,  solves  not  only  the  problem  now  proposed, 
but  gives  the  whole  motion  from  the  instant  of  the  application 
of  the  moving  forcive.  This  synthesis,  though  easily  put  into 
formula,  is  not  easily  worked  out  to  any  practical  conclusion.  On 
the  other  hand,  here  is  my  present  short  but  complete  solution  of 
the  problem  of  steady  motion  for  which  we  have  been  preparing, 
and  working  out  illustrations  in  §§  32-53. 

Continue  leftward,  indefinitely,  as  a  curve  of  sines,  the  D  curve 
of  each  of  figs.  18,  19,  20;  leaving  the  forcive  curve,  F,  isolated, 
as  shown  already  in  these  diagrams.  Or,  analytically  stated : — 
in  (89)  calculate  the  equal  values  of  d(0)  for  equal  positive  and 
negative  values  of  $  from  0*  to  40*  or  50*  by  {(83),  (86),  (87)}  ; 
and  for  all  larger  values  of  6  take 

d(^)=(-iyd(180')sin0*  +  i)^ (91), 

where  d(180')  is  calculated  by  {(83),  (86),  (87)}.  This  used  in 
(89),  makes  D(^)=0  for  all  positive  values  of  0  greater  than  40* 
or  50* ;  and  makes  it  the  double  of  (91)  for  all  negative  values  of 
e  beyond  -  40*  or  -  50*. 


^  55,  56.  Rigid  Covers  or  Pontoons^  introduced  to  apply  the  given 
forcive  (pressure  on  the  water-surf  ace), 

§  55.  In  any  one  of  our  diagrams  showing  a  water-surface 
imagine  a  rigid  cover  to  be  fixed,  fitting  close  to  the  whole  water- 
surface.  Now  look  at  the  forcive  curve,  F,  on  the  same  diagram, 
and  wherever  it  shows  no  sensible  pressure  remove  the  cover. 
The  motion  (non-motion  in  some  parts)  of  the  whole  water  remains 
unchanged.  Thus,  for  example,  in  figs.  13,  14,  15,  16,  let  the 
water  be  covered  by  stiff  covers  fitting  it  to  60*  on  each  side  of 
each  C ;  and  let  the  surface  be  free  from  60*  to  300*  in  each  of 
the  spaces  between  these  covers.     The  motion  remains  unchanged 


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1904-5.]      Lord  Kelvin  on  Deep  Watei*  Ship- Waves,  581 

under  the  covers,  and  under  the  free  portions  of  the  surface.  The 
pressure  n  constituting  the  given  forcive,  and  represented  by  the 
F  curve  in  each  case,  is  now  automatically  applied  by  the  covera. 

§  56.  Do  the  same  in  figs.  18,  19,  20  Mrith  reference  to  the 
isolated  forcives  which  they  show.  Thus  we  have  three  different 
cases  in  which  a  single  rigid  cover,  which  we  may  construct  as  the 
bottom  of  a  floating  pontoon,  kept  moving  at  a  stated  velocity  rela- 
tively to  the  still  water  before  it,  leaves  a  train  of  sinusoidal  waves 
in  its  rear.  The  D  curve  represents  the  bottom  of  the  pontoon  in 
each  case.  The  arrow  shows  the  direction  of  the  motion  of  the 
pontoon.  The  F  curve  shows  the  pressure  on  the  bottom  of  the 
pontoon.  In  fig.  20  this  pressure  is  so  small  at  -  2q  that  the 
pontoon  may  be  supposed  to  end  there;  and  it  will  leave  the 
water  with  free  surface  almost  exactly  sinusoidal  to  an  indefinite 
distance  behind  it  (infinite  distance  if  the  motion  has  been 
uniform  for  an  infinite  time).  The  F  curve  shows  that  in  fig.  19 
the  water  wants  guidance  as  far  back  as  -  3^,  and  in  fig.  18  as  far 
back  as  -  8g  to  keep  it  sinusoidal  when  left  free ;  q  being  in  each 
case  the  quarter  wave-length. 

§5  57-60.  Shapes  for  Waoeless  Pontoons,  and  their  Forcives. 

S  57.  Taking  any  case  such  as  those  represented  in  figs.  18,  19, 
20 ;  we  see  obviously  that  if  any  two  equal  and  similar  forcives 
are  applied,  with  a  distance  ^X  between  corresponding  points,  and 
if  the  forcive  thus  constituted  is  caused  to  travel  at  speed  equal  to 
iJgXI^TTy  being,  according  to  (77)  above,  the  velocity  of  free  waves 
of  length  X,  the  water  will  be  left  waveless  (at  rest)  behind  the 
travelling  forcive. 

§  58.  Taking  for  example  the  forcives  and  speeds  of  figs.  18,  19, 
20,  and  duplicating  each  forcive  in  the  manner  defined  in  §  57,  we 
find,  (by  proper  additions  of  two  numbers,  taken  from  our  tables 
of  numbers  calculated  for  figs.  18, 19,  20,)  the  numbers  which  give 
the  depressions  of  the  water  in  the  three  corresponding  waveless 
motions.  These  results  are  shown  graphically  in  fig.  21,  on  scales 
arranged  for  a  common  velocity.  The  free  wave-length  for  this 
velocity  is  shown  as  iq  in  the  diagram. 

§  59.  The  three  forcives,  and  the.  three  waveless  water-shapes 


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582  Proceedings  of  Boyal  Society  of  Edinburgh.         [sess. 


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1904-5.]     Lord  Kelvin  on  Deep  Waier  Ship-Waves,  583 

produced  by  them,  are  shown  in  figs.  22,  23,  24  on  different  scales, 
of  wave-length,  and  pressure,  chosen  for  the  convenience  of  each 
case. 

§  60.  As  most  interesting  of  the  three  cases  take  that  derived 
fromy  =  9  of  our  original  investigation.  By  looking  at  fig.  23  we 
see  that  a  pontoon  having  its  bottom  shaped  according  to  the 
D  curve  from  -3g  to  +3g,  \\  free  wave-lengths,  will  leave  the 
water  sensibly  fiat  and  at  j*est  if  it  moves  along  the  canal  at  the 
velocity  for  which  the  free-wave-length  is  4g.  And  the  pressure 
of  the  water  on  the  bottom  of  the  pontoon  is  that  represented 
hydrostatically  by  the  F  curve. 

§  61.  Imagine  the  scale  of  abscissas  in  each  of  the  four  diagrams, 
figs.  21-24,  to  be  enlarged  tenfold.  The  greatest  steepnesses  of  the 
D  curve  in  each  case  are  rendered  sufficiently  moderate  to  allow  it 
to  fairly  represent  a  real  water-surface  under  the  given  forcive. 
The  same  may  be  said  of  figs.  15,  16,  18,  19,  20 ;  and  of  figs.  13, 
14  with  abscissas  enlarged  twentyfold.  In  respect  to  mathematical 
hydrokinetics  generally;  it  is  interesting  to  remark  that  a  very 
liberal  interpretation  of  the  condition  of  infinitesimality  (§  36 
above)  is  practically  allowable.  Inclinations  to  the  horizon  of  as 
much  as  1/10  of  a  radian  (5* '7 ;  or,  say,  6*),  in  any  real  case  of 
water-waves  or  disturbances,  will  not  seriously  vitiate  the  mathe- 
matical result. 

§  62.  Fig.  17  represents  the  calculations  of  d(0*)  and 
(-iyd(180*)  for  twenty-nine  integral  values  of  j;  0,  1,  2,  3, 
....  19,  20,  30,  40,  ...  .  90,  100;  from  the  following 
formulas,  found  by  putting  ^  =  0*  and  ^=180°;  and  with  e=*9 
in  each  case,  and  c  =  1 

dXl80')  =  (-  1)'(2;-+  l)e'[ie«tan-'^-^^+  1  "  y  +  y'+  •  •  • 

The  asymptote  of  d(0*)  shown  in  the  diagram  is  explained  by 
remarking  that  when  j  is  infinitely  great,  the  travelling  velocity  of 


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584  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh.  [sbps. 

the  forcive  is  infinitely  small;  and  therefore,  by  end  of  §41,  the 
depression  is  that  hydrostatically  due  to  the  forcive  pressure.  Thijs 
at  ^  =  0*,  is  equal  to 

^  1-c       2 

§  63.  The  interpretation  of  the  curves  of  fig.  17  for  points 
between  those  corresponding  to  integral  values  of  j  is  exceedingly 
interesting.  We  shall  be  led  by  it  into  an  investigation  of  the 
disturbance  produced  by  the  motion  of  a  single  forcive,  expressed 

by 

n-jg, (94); 

but  this  must  be  left  for  a  future  communication,  when  it  will  be 
taken  up  as  a  preliminary  to  sea  ship-waves, 

§  64.  The  plan  of  solving  by  aid  of  periodic  functions  the 
two-dimensional  ship-wave  problem  for  infinitely  deep  water, 
adopted  in  the  present  communication,  was  given  in  Part  IV. 
of  a  series  of  papers  on  Stationary  Waves  in  Flowing  Water, 
published  in  the  Philosophical  Magazine,  October  1886  to  January 
1887,  with  analytical  methods  suited  for  water  of  finite  depths. 
The  annidment  of  sinusoidal  waves  in  front  of  the  source  of 
disturbance  (a  bar  across  the  bottom  of  the  canal),  by  the  super- 
position of  a  train  of  free  sinusoidal  waves  which  double  the 
sinusoidal  waves  in  the  rear,  was  illustrated  (December  1886)  by 
a  diagram  on  a  scale  too  small  to  show  the  residual  disturbance 
of  the  water  in  front,  described  in  §  53  above,  and  represented 
in  figs.  18,  19,  20. 

In  conclusion,  I  desire  to  thank  Mr  J.  de  Graaff  Hunter  for 
his  interested  and  zealous  co-operation  with  me  in  all  the  work  of 
the  present  communication,  and  for  the  great  labour  he  has  given 
in  the  calculation  of  results,  and  their  representation  by  diagrams. 


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1904-5.]     Lord  Kelvin  on  Deep  Water  Ship-  Waves. 


585 


I 


J 


8 

T 


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586  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  EdvnJbvrgh,        [i 


>oi 


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1904-5.]      Lord  Kelvin  on  Deep  Water  Ship -Waves, 


587 


•3 


.3 


I 


OQ 

I 


{Issued  separately  April  18,  1905.) 


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588  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinhirgh,  [sisa. 

On  Two  Liquid  States  of  Sulphur  Sx  and  S^  and  their 

Transition  Point.    By  Alexander  Smith. 

(MS.  received  Febroaiy  17,  1905.    Read  March  20,  1905.) 

{Ahsti'oct,) 

It  is  well  known  that  melted  sulphur  when  heated  beror**- 
suddenly  dark  brown  and  viscous  in  the  neighbourhood  of  •  •"  ^ 
170*.  These  and  other  facts  rendered  it  probable  that  th^n*  v  .^ 
a  transition  point  in  liquid  sulphur,  and  that  two  Uquid  ^•.:  • 
could  be  proved  to  exist,  one  of  them  being  stable  belov 
transition  point,  and  the  other  above  it.  According  to  the  phase 
rule,  a  single  substance  can  exist  in  three  phases  (two  liquid  and 
one  vapour  phase)  only  as  a  non- variant  system  at  a  single  tempera- 
ture and  pressure.  Thus,  if  the  two  liquid  forms  were  not 
completely  miscible,  the  lower  one  might  form  the  greater  part  of 
the  material  until,  as  the  temperature  rose,  it  became  saturated 
with  the  upper  one  and  a  new  phase  separated  out  This 
phenomenon  would  mark  the  transition  point,  and  the  smallest 
further  rise  in  temperature  would  cause  the  complete  disappearance 
of  the  first  phase.  The  substance  would  then  contain  a  small 
proportion  of  the  lower  form  in  solution  in  the  upper,  and  this 
proportion  would  diminish  with  rising  temperature.  No  case  of 
an  exactly  parallel  nature  is  known ;  but  the  transition  from 
*'  liquid  crystals "  to  an  isotropic  liquid  in  the  case  of  certain 
organic  compounds  is  to  a  certain  extent  analogous. 

For  the  discovery  of  a  transition  point  of  this  kind  the  study  of 
the  progressive  change  in  any  physical  property  as  the  temperature 
rises  is  available.  The  author  examined  successively  the  change 
in  viscosity,  the  change  in  solubility,  the  variation  in  the  co- 
efficient of  dilatation,  and  the  rather  marked  absorption  of  heat 
which  is  observed  to  accompany  the  sudden  onset  of  viscosity  in 
the  fluid.     The  results  were  as  follows  : — 

1.  In  melted  sulphur,  easily  perceptible  viscosity  appears  first  at 
159*5*.     At  160**  the  viscosity  is  already  very  great. 

2.  When  sulphur  is  held  at  162*5*  or  any  higher  temperature  a 
sudden  absorption  of  heat  and  simultaneous  sudden  access  of  vis- 
cosity occur,  and  the  temperature  falls  to  l62*.  The  transition 
point  is  therefore  not  above  the  latter  temperature. 

3.  Distilled  sulphur  does  not  show  either  of  these  phenomena 


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1904-5.]     Prof.  Smith  on  Two  Liquid  States  of  Sulphur.      589 

so  sharply  as  does  recrystaUised  sulphur,  and  seems  to  be  subject 
to  superheating. 

4.  It  was  shown  in  a  previous  paper  {Proc,  Roy,  Soc,  Edin., 
vol.  xxiv.  p.  342)  that  ordinary  sulphur  owes  to  the  presence  of 
sulphur  dioxide  its  tendency  to  give  amorphous  sulphur  when 
chilled,  and  that  sulphur  which  while  melted  has  been  treated 
with  ammonia,  gives  when  quenched  nothing  but  soluble  crystal- 
line sulphur.  The  phenomena  described  in  1  and  2  above  take 
place  in  the  same  way  and  at  precisely  the  same  temperatures, 
whether  the  sulphur  concerned  is  such  as  by  chilling  gives  in- 
soluble sulphur,  or,  having  been  treated  with  ammonia,  does  not. 

5.  The  existence  of  two  independent  curves  of  solubility  for 
the  two  kinds  of  liquid  sulphur  in  triphenylmethane  and  other 
solvents  is  demonstrated.  The  solubility  of  yellow  mobile 
sulphur  (Sx)  increases,  that  of  brown  viscous  sulphur  (S^)  de- 
creases, with  rise  in  temperature. 

6.  The  expansion  of  yellow  mobile  sulphur  (Sa)  diminishes 
rapidly  from  154**  to  160°;  that  of  brown  viscous  sulphur  (S^) 
increases  rapidly  from  160"  upwards.  The  statement  under  4 
holds  in  this  case  also. 

7.  The  dilatometric  method  gives  no  evidence  of  the  existence 
of  Frankenheim's  transition  point  (250-260**). 

8.  It  is  shown  that  the  point  of  minimum  dilatation  is  displaced 
upwards  when  triphenylmethane  is  dissolved  in  the  sulphur.  The 
displacement  averages  2*8°  for  1  per  cent,  of  this  foreign  body. 

9.  The  production  of  the  new  phase  is  easily  to  be  seen  when 
strongly  heated  brown  viscous  sulphur  is  allowed  to  cool  in  a  test- 
tube.  The  radiation  from  the  greater  surface  at  the  bottom 
causes  the  formation  of  the  mobile  yellow  liquid  first  in  that 
region.  The  interface  between  the  two  varieties  is  quite  distinct, 
and  recedes  slowly  up  the  tube  as  the  transition  proceeds.  Owing, 
however,  to  the  progress  of  the  change  mthin  the  upper  brown 
layer,  the  interface  gradually  becomes  indistinct. 

10.  It  is  thus  shown  conclusively  that  there  are  two  liquid 
states  of  sulphur,  which  are  partially,  but  only  partially,  miscible. 
These  are  S^,  which  predominates  from  the  melting  point  to  160% 
and  S^,  which  prevails  above  160*.  As  the  temperature  ascends, 
saturation  of  the  former  with  the  latter  determines  the  separation 
of  the  new  phase,  and  conversely  when  the  temperature  falls. 

(Issiied  separately  April  18,  1905.) 


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590  Proceedings  of  Royal  Society  of  JEdiriburgh, 


The  Nature  of  Amorphous  Sulphur,  and  ContributionB 
to  the  Study  of  the  Influence  of  Foreign  Bodies  * 
the    Phenomena    of   Superoooling    observed    -wl 
Melted  Sulphur  is  suddenly  Chilled.     By  Aiezano** 
Smith. 

(MS.  received  February  17,  1905.     Read  March  20,  1905.) 

(Abstract) 

1.  The  hardening  of  plastic  sulphur  was  investigated,  and  it  was 
found  that  partial  reversion  to  soluble  sulphur  prevents  the  securing 
in  quasi-solid  form  of  the  whole  of  the  amorphous  sulphur  present. 
It  was  discovered,  however,  that  sulphur  formed  by  precipitation 
in  presence  of  concentrated  acids  does  yield  100  per  cent,  of 
insoluble  sulphur,  and  that  only  the  impossibility  of  realising  the 
requisite  condition  of  very  fine  subdivision  is  therefore  responsible 
for  the  smaller  yields  from  melted  sulphur  which  has  reached  the 
highest  temperatures  previous  to  being  chilled. 

2.  A  new  series  of  measurements  of  the  proportions  of  insoluble 
sulphur  formed  when  common  sulphur  is  chilled  from  various 
temperatures  was  made.  The  amounts  vary  from  4*2  per  cent,  at 
130"  to  34  per  cent,  at  448°.  In  this,  and  in  all  other  cases 
described  below,  only  the  insoluble  sulphur  which  remains  after 
the  viscous  material  has  completely  hardened  was  estimated. 

3.  It  was  found  that  when  sulphur  was  subjected  to  prolonged 
heating  at  448'',  or  was  heated  for  a  shorter  time  in  vacuo,  or  was 
used  immediately  after  recrystallisation,  or  was  washed  with  water 
before  being  heated,  the  amount  of  insoluble  sulphur  obtainable 
by  chilling  was  greatly  reduced.  The  eflfects  of  these  modes 
of  treatment  seemed  to  be  to  remove  a  trace  of  sulphuric  acid 
which  sulphur  acquires  by  exposure  to  the  air. 

4.  It  appeared  that  gases  like  carbon  dioxide,  and  particularly 
ammonia  and  hydrogen  sulphide,  when  led  through  melted  sulphur, 


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1904-5.]       Professor  Smith  on  Amorphovs  Sulphur.  591 

destroyed  the  ahiHty  to  give  insoluble  sulphur.     Their  use  did  not 
however,  affect  the  viscosity  above  160°. 

5.  It  was  shown  that  air  and  sulphur  dioxide  restored  the  ability 
to  give  insoluble  sulphur.  The  halogens,  the  halogen  hydrides, 
and  even  dry  phosphoric  acid,  had  the  same  effect. 

6.  It  was  found  that  sulphur  which  had  been  treated  with 
ammonia  while  melted,  and  had  afterwards  been  recrystallised,  if 
used  at  once,  froze  at  119*17°  and  contained  no  insoluble  sulphur. 
In  a  previous  investigation  {Proc.  R,S,E,,  vol.  xxiv.  p.  299)  it  had 
been  shown  that  insoluble  sulphur,  when  present,  depressed  the 
freezing  point,  in  accordance  with  Raoult's  law. 

7.  Sulphur  containing  iodine  (100:2)  gave  when  heated  and 
chilled  large  amounts  of  insoluble  sulphur.  These  ranged  from 
4  per  cent,  at  110"  to  62-7  per  cent,  at  448% 

8.  The  amount  of  insoluble  sulphur  obtained  at  150°  was  pro- 
portional to  the  quantity  of  iodine  present  when  the  quantity  of 
the  latter  was  1  per  cent,  or  more. 

9.  Sulphur  prepared  by  distilling  the  element  and  quenching 
the  burning  stream  in  ice-water  gave  51  per  cent,  of  insoluble 
sulphur.  Chilling  boiling  sulphur  in  ether  gave  44*1  per  cent,  of 
the  insoluble  form. 

10.  It  was  demonstrated,  by  identity  in  boiling  points  under 
ordinary  and  reduced  pressures,  and  by  identity  in  specific  gravities, 
that  sulphur  which  will  give  the  insoluble  form  when  chilled  is 
identical  in  constitution  near  the  boiling  point  with  that  which 
will  not. 

11.  It  was  shown  by  identity  in  solubility  between  120°  and 
160°  that  the  two  kinds  of  sulphur  mentioned  in  10  are  identical 
in  constitution  also  below  the  transition  point  of  S^  to  S;^  (160*). 

12.  The  facts  referred  to  in  10  and  11,  together  with  the  con- 
clusions of  the  preceding  paper  showing  the  identity  of  the  two 
kinds  of  sulphur  at  the  transition  point  (160°)  itself,  demonstrate 
that  the  insoluble  form  is  present  in  all  specimens  of  melted 
sulphur  in  proportions  depending  upon  the  temperature  alone, 
whether,  by  treatment  with  ammonia  or  otherwise,  they  have  lost 
the  capacity  to  give  insoluble  sulphur  by  chilling  or  not. 

13.  The  conclusion  is  reached  that  amorphous  sulphur  is 
supercooled  S/*, — the  form  stable  above  160°. 


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592  ProceediTigs  of  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh.         [i 

14.  With  pure  sulphur,  freed  from  sulphur  dioxide  by  recrystal- 
lisation  or  by  treatment  with  carbon  dioxide  above  310*,  or  by 
treatment  with  ammonia  or  hydrogen  sulphide  at  any  temperature 
at  which  it  is  fluid,  the  S^  reverts  so  rapidly  to  the  soluble  form 
that  it  cannot  be  supercooled.  When  traces  of  sulphur  dioxide, 
iodine,  and  other  substances  are  present,  S^  is  more  or  less  co"!- 
pletely  supercooled  and  gives  amorphous  sulphur.  The  way  ■ 
which  the  latter  class  of  foreign  substances  produces  this  eff 

is  still  being  investigated. 

15.  There  is  a  close  analogy  of   these   phenomena    to   thi  ^ 
observed  in  the  cooling  of  cast-iron  and  steel. 


{l8S%ted  separaiehj  April  18,  1906.) 


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Ill 

To  prevent  delay,  authors  residing  abroad  sliould   appoint  some   one 
residing  in  this  country  to  correct  their  proofs. 

4.  Additions  to  a  Papek  after  it  has  been  finally  handed  in  for 
publication,  if  accepted*  by  the  Council,  will  be  treated  and  dated  as 
separate  communications,  and  may,  or  may  not,  be  printed  immediately 
after  the  original  paper. 

5.  Brief  Abstracts  op  Transactions  Papers  will  be  published  in 
the  Proceedings,  provided  they  are  sent  along  with  the  original  paper. 

6.  Separate  Issue  of  Reprints;  Author's  Free  and  Additional 
Copies. — As  soon  as  the  final  revise  of  a  Transactions  paper  has  been 
returned,  or  as  soon  as  the  sheet  in  which  the  last  part  of  a  Proceedings 
paper  appears  is  ready  for  press,  a  certain  number  of  separate  copies  or 
reprints,  in  covers  bearing  the  title  of  the  paper  and  the  name  of  the 
author,  are  printed  off  and  placed  on  sale.  The  date  of  such  separate 
publication  will  be  printed  on  each  paper. 

The  author  receives  fifty  of  these  reprints  free,  and  may  have  any 
reasonable  number  of  additional  copies  at  a  fixed  scale  of  prices  which 
will  be  furnished  by  the  printer,  who  will  charge  him  with  the  cost. 
To  prevent  disappointment,  especially  if  the  paper  contains  plates, 
the  author  should,  immediately  after  receiving  his  first  proof,  notify 
to  the  jpi-inier  the  number  of  additional  copies  required. 

7.  Index  Slips. — In  order  to  facilitate  the  compilation  of  Subject 
Indices,  and  to  secure  that  due  attention  to  the  Important  points  in  a 
paper  shall  bo  given  in  General  Catalogues  of  Scientific  Literature  and 
in  Abstracts  by  Periodicals,  every  author  is  requested  to  return  to  the 
Secretnry  along  with  his  final  proof  a  brief  index  (on  the  model  given 
below),  of  the  points  in  it  which  he  considers  new  or  important.  These 
indices  will  be  edited  by  the  Secretary,  and  incorporated  in  Separate 
Index  Slips,  to  be  issued  with  each  part  of  the  Proceedings  and 
Transactions. 


IklODEL  INDEX. 

Schafer,  E.  A. — On  the  Existence  within  the  Liver  Cells  of  Channels  which  can 
be  directly  injected  from  the  Blood-vessels.     Proc.  Roy.  Soc.  Edin.,  vol.      , 
1902,  pp. 
Cells,  Liver, — Intra-cellular  Canaliculi  in. 

E.  A.  Schafer.     Proc.  Roy.  Soc  Edin.,  vol.        ,  1902,  pp. 
Liver, — Injection  within  Cells  of. 

E.  A.  Schafer.     Proc.  Roy.  Soc  Edin.,  vol.         ,  1902,  pp. 


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IV  CONTENTS. 


PAGE 


A  Study  of  Three  Vegetarian  Diets.  By  J).  Noel  Patox 
and  J.  C.  Dun  LOP.  {From  the  Research  Lafxtrafory 
of  the  Royal  College  of  Phydciam,  Eilinlnir(jh\  .       498 

{Issued  seixtraiely  ApHl  8,  1905.) 

Continuants   whose    Main    Diagonal    is    Univarial.      By 

Thomas  Muir,  LI^D.,  ....       507 

{Issued  separately  April  8,  1905.) 

On  Professor  Seeliger's  Theory  of  Temporary  Stars.  By 
J.  Halm,  Ph.D.,  Lecturer  on  Astronomy  in  the 
University  of  Edinburgh,  and  Assistant  Astronomei 
at  the  Royal  Observatory,      .  .  .  .513 

{Issued  separately  April  15,  1905.) 

Some    Suggestions    on    the    Nebular    Hypothesis.       By 

J.  Halm,  Ph.D.,         .  .  .  .  .553 

{Issued  separately  April  15,  1905.) 

Deep  Water  Ship-Waves.     {Goiitimied  from  Proc.  R.S.E., 

.Tune  20th,  1904.)     By  T^rd  Kelvin,  .  .       562 

{Issued  separately  April  18,  1905.) 

On  Two  Liquid  States  of  Sulphur  Sa  and  S^  and^^their 

Transition  Point.     By  Alexander  Smith.    (Abstract),       588 
{Issued  separately  April  18,  1905.) 

The  Nature  of  Amorphous  Sulphur,  and  Contributions  to 
the  Study  of  the  Influence  of  Foreign  Bodies^  on  the 
Phenomena  of  Supercooling   observed  when    Melted 
Sulphur  is  suddenly  Chilled.     By  Albxander  Smith. 
{Abstract),       ......       590 

{Issued  separately  April  18,  1905.) 


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